| Documentation: | Census 1960 (US, County & State) |
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Publisher: U.S. Census Bureau
Survey: Census 1960 (US, County & State)
| Document: | Childspacing (Volume II, Part III - Subject Reports) |
| citation: | U.S. Bureau of the Census. U.S. Census of Population: 1960. Subject Reports, Childspacing. Final Report PC(2)-3B. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 1968. |
Chapter Contents
Some of the definitions used in 1960 differ from those used in 1950. These changes were made after consultation with users of census data in order to improve the statistics, even though it was recognized that comparability would be affected. The definitions and explanations should be interpreted in the context of the 1960 Censuses, in "which data were collected by a combination of self-enumeration, direct interview, and observation by the enumerator.
The definitions below are consistent with the instructions given to the enumerator. As in all surveys, there were some failures to execute the instructions exactly. Through the forms distributed to households, the respondents were given explanations of some of the questions more uniformly than would have been given in direct interviews. Nevertheless, it was not feasible to give the full instructions to the respondents, and some erroneous replies have undoubtedly gone undetected.
More complete discussions of the definitions of population and housing items are given in 1960 Census of Population, Volume X, Characteristics of the Population, Part 1, United States Summary, and each of the State parts.
The definitions below are consistent with the instructions given to the enumerator. As in all surveys, there were some failures to execute the instructions exactly. Through the forms distributed to households, the respondents were given explanations of some of the questions more uniformly than would have been given in direct interviews. Nevertheless, it was not feasible to give the full instructions to the respondents, and some erroneous replies have undoubtedly gone undetected.
More complete discussions of the definitions of population and housing items are given in 1960 Census of Population, Volume X, Characteristics of the Population, Part 1, United States Summary, and each of the State parts.
The term "childspacing" refers, in general, to the timing of births to women. It refers to the interval between marriage of a woman and the birth of a child, to the intervals between births of her successive children, to births by successive ages or successive marriage durations of the woman, and to other types of data that directly or indirectly bear on changes in the timing or spacing of births. The child- spacing data are retrospective in nature, whereas other decennial census reports present fertility data as of the census date rather than for successive past points in time.
The data on childspacing are based on the woman's birth date and marriage date and on the birth dates of her children born alive. For example, the age of a woman at the birth of her first child is obtained by subtraction of her birth date from that of the first child, and the interval between her first marriage and the first child is obtained by subtraction of the marriage date from the first child's birth date. The marriage date of the woman and the birth dates of children present in the home were based on direct questions asked in the census. The birth dates of children absent from home or deceased were estimated as explained in the section on "Allocation of birth dates for children absent from home."
The data on childspacing are based on the woman's birth date and marriage date and on the birth dates of her children born alive. For example, the age of a woman at the birth of her first child is obtained by subtraction of her birth date from that of the first child, and the interval between her first marriage and the first child is obtained by subtraction of the marriage date from the first child's birth date. The marriage date of the woman and the birth dates of children present in the home were based on direct questions asked in the census. The birth dates of children absent from home or deceased were estimated as explained in the section on "Allocation of birth dates for children absent from home."
Birth dates were available for own children of the woman who were present in the home, but, to obtain a complete birth roster, they were estimated (allocated) for children who had died or left home. The birth rosters were derived only for women ever married who were either (1) 14 to 40 years old at the time of the 1960 Census or (2) first married in 1940 or later. The intention was to eliminate women who were so old or had been married so long that most of their children had grown up and left home. However, data for women 35 to 40 years old in 1960 or first married in 1940 to 1944 were purposely included even though it was realized that a considerable proportion of those women would have at least one child absent from home. Women never married were treated childless for purposes of this report, but the data to women ever married include some illegitimate births.
The allocations of birth dates for children absent from home involved several steps. First, the number of absent children was determined by subtraction of the number of the woman's own children present in the home from the number of her children ever born. (In the relatively few cases, amounting to less than one percent, where adoptions or stepchildren caused the number of own children present to exceed the number of children ever born to a woman, data for the oldest children were dropped to make the remaining children present equal to the number of children ever born for purposes of the birth roster.) Second, allocations were made of the positions of the absent children if any, as being born before, between, or after children who were present. Third, an allocation was made of the spacing of each absent child in relation to a prior child or to the date the mother married, and that spacing was added to the date of the prior event to obtain a birth date for the absent child.
The allocations of positions and spacing in the second and third steps cited above were based largely on distributions obtained from the August 1959 Current Population Survey. That survey obtained birth dates (and hence spacing) for both present and absent children ever born to women in a sample of about 35,000 households, and information on whether each child was present or absent. Deceased children were counted as "absent." The allocation tables developed from the 1959 survey for use with the 1960 Census childspacing edits were many and complex, and in some instances were based on few observations. The allocation tables were specific for color and parity of the woman and the interval since marriage or the birth of a previous child. The allocation tables were based on 1959 survey data for women who had at least one child absent from home.
If the tabulations for the present report had been limited to data for women with all their children ever born present in the home, the results would have been somewhat selective of white women, women with few children, and women with recent births or delayed childbearing. Even though the allocations of birth dates for children absent from home were subject to some error, these allocations made a considerable improvement in the quality of the data over what would have been obtained had the data been limited to women with all their children present.
Table A presents a summary of data on the proportion of allocations for children absent from home. Many of the women with children absent had other children who were present so that the proportion of children with allocated birth dates is much less than the proportion of women who had absent children. Thus a woman with two children present and one child absent needed an allocation of birth date for only one-third of her children but she contributed in her entirety to the proportion of women with at least one absent child.
Table A. Proportion of Children Ever Born With Birth Date Allocated, By color and age of Mother, For the United States: 1960
The allocations of birth dates for children absent from home involved several steps. First, the number of absent children was determined by subtraction of the number of the woman's own children present in the home from the number of her children ever born. (In the relatively few cases, amounting to less than one percent, where adoptions or stepchildren caused the number of own children present to exceed the number of children ever born to a woman, data for the oldest children were dropped to make the remaining children present equal to the number of children ever born for purposes of the birth roster.) Second, allocations were made of the positions of the absent children if any, as being born before, between, or after children who were present. Third, an allocation was made of the spacing of each absent child in relation to a prior child or to the date the mother married, and that spacing was added to the date of the prior event to obtain a birth date for the absent child.
The allocations of positions and spacing in the second and third steps cited above were based largely on distributions obtained from the August 1959 Current Population Survey. That survey obtained birth dates (and hence spacing) for both present and absent children ever born to women in a sample of about 35,000 households, and information on whether each child was present or absent. Deceased children were counted as "absent." The allocation tables developed from the 1959 survey for use with the 1960 Census childspacing edits were many and complex, and in some instances were based on few observations. The allocation tables were specific for color and parity of the woman and the interval since marriage or the birth of a previous child. The allocation tables were based on 1959 survey data for women who had at least one child absent from home.
If the tabulations for the present report had been limited to data for women with all their children ever born present in the home, the results would have been somewhat selective of white women, women with few children, and women with recent births or delayed childbearing. Even though the allocations of birth dates for children absent from home were subject to some error, these allocations made a considerable improvement in the quality of the data over what would have been obtained had the data been limited to women with all their children present.
Table A presents a summary of data on the proportion of allocations for children absent from home. Many of the women with children absent had other children who were present so that the proportion of children with allocated birth dates is much less than the proportion of women who had absent children. Thus a woman with two children present and one child absent needed an allocation of birth date for only one-third of her children but she contributed in her entirety to the proportion of women with at least one absent child.
Table A. Proportion of Children Ever Born With Birth Date Allocated, By color and age of Mother, For the United States: 1960
| color and age of mother | Mothers ever married with one or more children ever born | Children Ever Born | ||||
| Total | With at least one child absent | Total | With birth rate allocated | |||
| Number | Percent of total | Number | Percent of total | |||
| White | ||||||
| 15 to 19 years | 468,904 | 70,020 | 14.9 | 604,477 | 86,734 | 14.3 |
| 20 to 24 years | 2,567,890 | 234,162 | 9.1 | 4,654,035 | 319,161 | 6.9 |
| 25 to 29 years | 3,772,890 | 347,655 | 9.2 | 9,320,430 | 519,007 | 5.6 |
| 30 to 34 years | 4,486,961 | 506,607 | 11.3 | 12,701,477 | 768,623 | 6.1 |
| 35 to 39 years | 4,793,523 | 991,439 | 20.7 | 13,988,828 | 1,549,832 | 11.1 |
| Nonwhite | ||||||
| 15 to 19 years | 89,423 | 26,149 | 29.2 | 140,345 | 35,557 | 25.3 |
| 20 to 24 years | 348,986 | 89,840 | 25.7 | 826,017 | 147,222 | 17.8 |
| 25 to 29 years | 485,764 | 129,780 | 26.7 | 1,558,261 | 234,919 | 15.1 |
| 30 to 34 years | 536,369 | 162,019 | 30.2 | 1,989,573 | 311,620 | 15.7 |
| 35 to 39 years | 511,421 | 223,904 | 43.8 | 1,971,720 | 447,806 | 22.7 |
In the tape files used for tabulation of 1960 Census data, dates of birth and dates of first marriage are coded in terms of the calendar quarter (January-March, April-June, July-September, October-December) and the year. The month and day of the event are not available. The effect of using calendar quarters on the measurement of intervals between events is illustrated by the following example:
Suppose that a group of women married for the first time in July-September 1951 and that each of these women had a first child in October-December 1952. There are 5 calendar quarters in all between the two dates. If the 5 calendar quarters are multiplied by 3 months per quarter, the result is an estimated average spacing of 15 months. The true average spacing depends on how the women and their children are distributed within the two periods. If the women and their children are evenly distributed, then half of the women would have a spacing between marriage and first birth of less than 15.0 months and half of more than 15.0 months. The largest number of combinations of a day in the marriage period with a day in the first-birth period would be associated with a spacing exactly 15.0 months from the marriage day.1 There would be progressively fewer combinations for successive exact spacings on either side of the peak value of 15.0 months. Half of all possible combinations would fall in a range of 27 days on either side of the median spacing of 15.0 months. The general nature of the distribution is illustrated by the following sketch:
The above example serves several purposes. First, it illustrates the characteristics of the data that are obtained when one date expressed in calendar quarter and year is subtracted from another date expressed in calendar quarter and year. The result is a spacing interval that for a large group of women tends to correspond to the exact average spacing that might be figured from two dates in terms of day, month, and year. In the example, the 15 months is used to mean exactly 15.0 months, not to an interval such as the "15th month." Within the two calendar quarters, the possible combinations of pairs of days are such that there is much concentration on intervals close to 15.0 months and very little chance of extreme errors of as much as 3 months on either side of the 15.0 months midpoint. This concentration means that even if the distribution of a large group of women is moderately- skewed, the difference computed from calendar quarters and years should still come close to representing the average spacing interval for the group. Second, the example provides an indirect justification for showing the average interval between events in terms of months, as given in some tables of this report, where this average was obtained by multiplying the average difference in calendar quarters by 3 months per quarter. Third, the example provides a rationale for a half- and-half apportionment of births by certain kinds of spacing detail discussed in the next section.
Suppose that a group of women married for the first time in July-September 1951 and that each of these women had a first child in October-December 1952. There are 5 calendar quarters in all between the two dates. If the 5 calendar quarters are multiplied by 3 months per quarter, the result is an estimated average spacing of 15 months. The true average spacing depends on how the women and their children are distributed within the two periods. If the women and their children are evenly distributed, then half of the women would have a spacing between marriage and first birth of less than 15.0 months and half of more than 15.0 months. The largest number of combinations of a day in the marriage period with a day in the first-birth period would be associated with a spacing exactly 15.0 months from the marriage day.1 There would be progressively fewer combinations for successive exact spacings on either side of the peak value of 15.0 months. Half of all possible combinations would fall in a range of 27 days on either side of the median spacing of 15.0 months. The general nature of the distribution is illustrated by the following sketch:
The above example serves several purposes. First, it illustrates the characteristics of the data that are obtained when one date expressed in calendar quarter and year is subtracted from another date expressed in calendar quarter and year. The result is a spacing interval that for a large group of women tends to correspond to the exact average spacing that might be figured from two dates in terms of day, month, and year. In the example, the 15 months is used to mean exactly 15.0 months, not to an interval such as the "15th month." Within the two calendar quarters, the possible combinations of pairs of days are such that there is much concentration on intervals close to 15.0 months and very little chance of extreme errors of as much as 3 months on either side of the 15.0 months midpoint. This concentration means that even if the distribution of a large group of women is moderately- skewed, the difference computed from calendar quarters and years should still come close to representing the average spacing interval for the group. Second, the example provides an indirect justification for showing the average interval between events in terms of months, as given in some tables of this report, where this average was obtained by multiplying the average difference in calendar quarters by 3 months per quarter. Third, the example provides a rationale for a half- and-half apportionment of births by certain kinds of spacing detail discussed in the next section.
1For each of the 92 days in the marriage period (July-September 1951), a day In the birth period (October-December 1952) can be found that is exactly 15.0 months later. But there are only 91 possible combinations that yield an exact spacing of 1 day less than 15.0 months. There are only 90 combinations that yield an exact spacing of 2 days less than 15.0 months, and so on to a minimum of only one possible combination for the shortest interval of 12 months. On the other side of the midpoint of exactly 15.0 months, there are only 91 possible combinations that yield an exact spacing of 1 day more than 15.0 months, 90 that yield a spacing of 2 days more, and so on down to one combination for the longest possible interval of 18 months.
In the present report, women born in a specified calendar quarter were tabulated as being at the start of age "n" when they were in the anniversary quarter "n" years later. For example, women born in July-September 1920 were tabulated as being at the start of age 30 in July-September 1950. In tables showing numbers of women of a given parity at the start of a specified year after marriage, the women were tabulated in the manner just described; however, the births of their children were tabulated differently. Half of the births occurring in an anniversary quarter were tabulated as occurring in the woman's age or marriage duration that ended in that quarter and half as occurring in the age or marriage duration that began in that calendar quarter. By way of illustration, half of the first births in April-June 1958 to mothers first married in April-June 1956 were tabulated as occurring in the second year after marriage and half as occurring at the start of the third year after marriage.
In tables showing parity progressions of women, all of which involved women of a given parity at the start of an age or marriage duration, only those births during a year of age or marriage duration were counted which advanced the woman to the next parity. Thus, in the case of a woman who was childless at the start of an age and who had twins during that age, only the first child was counted. The same woman was treated as being of two-parity status at the start of the next age and thus never qualified for Inclusion in a table for women of one parity at the start of an age. Similarly, in tables showing women of given parities at the start of each marriage duration those with children born before marriage were included in the proper parity at the time of their first marriage.
Some tables present data on births cumulated through the midpoint of successive years of age for a birth cohort of women. This procedure yields data similar to information on children ever born to women by single years of age. On the average, women in a single year of age at a survey date are about half way through that age.
In the cumulations of births, one-half of those occurring in calendar quarters in which the mother reached the midpoint of a year of age were tabulated as occurring before the midpoint age and one-half as occurring after the midpoint age.
Some tables show the average number of months between births. These data were obtained by first computing the average number of calendar quarters between births and then by multiplying that average by 3 months per quarter.
Data on cumulated births of each birth order by successive ages or marriage durations of cohorts of women cannot be readily differenced and interpolated in a manner that will yield data comparable to those shown in parity-progression tables.
In tables showing parity progressions of women, all of which involved women of a given parity at the start of an age or marriage duration, only those births during a year of age or marriage duration were counted which advanced the woman to the next parity. Thus, in the case of a woman who was childless at the start of an age and who had twins during that age, only the first child was counted. The same woman was treated as being of two-parity status at the start of the next age and thus never qualified for Inclusion in a table for women of one parity at the start of an age. Similarly, in tables showing women of given parities at the start of each marriage duration those with children born before marriage were included in the proper parity at the time of their first marriage.
Some tables present data on births cumulated through the midpoint of successive years of age for a birth cohort of women. This procedure yields data similar to information on children ever born to women by single years of age. On the average, women in a single year of age at a survey date are about half way through that age.
In the cumulations of births, one-half of those occurring in calendar quarters in which the mother reached the midpoint of a year of age were tabulated as occurring before the midpoint age and one-half as occurring after the midpoint age.
Some tables show the average number of months between births. These data were obtained by first computing the average number of calendar quarters between births and then by multiplying that average by 3 months per quarter.
Data on cumulated births of each birth order by successive ages or marriage durations of cohorts of women cannot be readily differenced and interpolated in a manner that will yield data comparable to those shown in parity-progression tables.
In tables showing cumulative fertility data, births have been adjusted for the part of a cohort that had not reached the midpoint of a stated age or marriage interval by the time of the 1960 Census. Such data are footnoted in the tables to indicate that they have been adjusted. In order to keep the computer programming reasonably simple, arithmetic proportions, which are approximately correct, were used for the adjustment. These proportions were obtained in the manner Illustrated by the following example:
For women born in the 5-year period from 1925 to 1929, 20 calendar quarters of birth dates were available in the census records-from January-March 1925 to October-December 1929. It was assumed, for the purpose of computing adjustment proportions, that the women were evenly distributed within the 5-year period. Thus, 20 quarters could be taken as representing all possible birthdates from the midpoint of one single year of age to the next single year of age. Of the 20 calendar quarters available, all were sufficiently distant from the 1960 Census date (April 1, 1960) for all women to reach the midpoint of age 30. Each calendar quarter was compared with the April 1, 1960, Census date and given a weight of "1" if it represented attainment of the midpoint of each age, and each was given an appropriate fractional weight if it represented partial experience between the midpoints of one age and the next age. The weights for the 20 calendar quarters were then summed within each desired age interval. For each desired age interval, the adjustment proportion was the ratio of 20 quarters (representing full experience) to the sum of the weights (representing partial experience) for that age interval. The adjustment proportions were applied to uncumulated data on births. Cumulations of births were made after the births were adjusted.
For women born in the 5-year period from 1925 to 1929, 20 calendar quarters of birth dates were available in the census records-from January-March 1925 to October-December 1929. It was assumed, for the purpose of computing adjustment proportions, that the women were evenly distributed within the 5-year period. Thus, 20 quarters could be taken as representing all possible birthdates from the midpoint of one single year of age to the next single year of age. Of the 20 calendar quarters available, all were sufficiently distant from the 1960 Census date (April 1, 1960) for all women to reach the midpoint of age 30. Each calendar quarter was compared with the April 1, 1960, Census date and given a weight of "1" if it represented attainment of the midpoint of each age, and each was given an appropriate fractional weight if it represented partial experience between the midpoints of one age and the next age. The weights for the 20 calendar quarters were then summed within each desired age interval. For each desired age interval, the adjustment proportion was the ratio of 20 quarters (representing full experience) to the sum of the weights (representing partial experience) for that age interval. The adjustment proportions were applied to uncumulated data on births. Cumulations of births were made after the births were adjusted.
The number of own children living with a woman and the birth dates of those children were determined by a computer examination of the records for every member of the household in which the woman lived. The own children comprise sons and daughters of the woman, excluding insofar as possible for purposes of the present report, any children she has adopted and her stepchildren. Adopted children and stepchildren were partly eliminated from data on own children by a procedure that dropped data for the oldest children when the number of own children present exceeded the number of children ever born to the woman. Less than one percent of the women had more children present than children ever born. A combination of various kinds of evidence 2 indicates that roughly 3 percent of the remaining own children are stepchildren and adopted children.
The number of children ever born includes children born to the woman before her present marriage, children no longer living, and children away from home, as well as children borne by the woman who were still living in the home. Although the question on children ever born was asked only of women reported as having been married, the data are not limited to legitimate births.
As explained in the section on "Collection and processing of data," certain records were deleted during the Electronic Processing and tabulation of the child-spacing data. Some of the deleted records represented errors of response or of coding that could not readily be corrected without a further complication of already complex Electronic Processing procedures. The majority of the deletions occurred, however, through minor errors in programming procedures that were discovered too late for repair. Because of the deletions, the numbers of women shown in the present report are smaller than those expected from a full sample and, therefore, are not strictly comparable with those shown In other reports of the 1960 Census. As shown in table B, the shortages amount to about one percent for white women at ages over 24 and to about four percent for nonwhite women of this age range. The shortages are larger for women under age 25 for reasons explained in the section on "Collection and processing of data."
Table B. Estimated Shortage of Women 15 To 39 Years Old In the Present Report Resulting From Processing Errors by age, color, and Year of Birth of Woman, For the United States: 1960
(Based on 5-percent sample)
Source: Expected numbers of women derived from 1960 Census of Population, Final report PC(2)-3A, Women by Number of Children Ever Born, tables 2 to 5. Tabulated numbers from tables 19, 20, and 42 of present report.
The effect of the shortages in numbers of women on the birth rates depends on the relative fertility of the women in the deleted records and of the women in the remaining records. At ages under 25, the remaining records were somewhat selective of women ever married with one or more children ever born. This fact can be seen indirectly from table B by comparing the percent underrepresented for all women torn in 1940 to 1944 with the percent underrepresented for approximately the same cohort (i.e., women 15 to 19 years old in 1960) who were ever married and had one or more children ever born; and by comparing data for other cohorts in a similar manner. At ages 15-19 and 20-24, the percent underrepresented is higher for all women than for the mothers ever married, reflecting the effect of relatively fewer deletions for mothers ever married than for other women. At ages 25-29 and above, there is little selective effect.
Table C presents rates of children ever born per 1,000 women, by age, as obtained from tabulations for the present report and as obtained from another report of the 1960 Census. The close agreement of the rates from the two sources of data indicates that the deletions had little effect on rates of children ever born.
Table C. Comparison of Data in the Present Report and Report PC(2)-3a- Children Ever Born Per 1,000 Women 15 To 39 Years Old and Per 1,000 Mothers, By color, And age of Woman, For the United States: 1960
(Based on 5-percent sample)
Table B. Estimated Shortage of Women 15 To 39 Years Old In the Present Report Resulting From Processing Errors by age, color, and Year of Birth of Woman, For the United States: 1960
(Based on 5-percent sample)
| Subject | White | Nonwhite | ||||
| Expected number of women | Tabulated for present report | Percent under-represented | Expected number of women | Tabulated for present report | Percent under-represented | |
| All women | ||||||
| Born in 1940 to 1944 | 5,725,549 | 5,200,114 | -9.2 | 809,947 | 712,629 | -12.0 |
| Born in 1935 to 1939 | 4,810,408 | 4,662,149 | -3.1 | 689,152 | 641,526 | -6.9 |
| Born in 1930 to 1934 | 4,847,559 | 4,791,230 | -1.2 | 705,229 | 680,480 | -3.5 |
| Born in 1925 to 1929 | 5,402,607 | 5,333,940 | -1.3 | 727,618 | 702,892 | -3.4 |
| Born in 1920 to 1924 | 5,719,828 | 5,691,335 | -0.5 | 703,939 | 686,156 | -2.5 |
| Women ever married with one or more children ever born | ||||||
| 15 to 19 years | 497,444 | 468,904 | -5.7 | 98,771 | 89,423 | -9.5 |
| 20 to 24 years | 2,619,287 | 2,567,890 | -*2.0 | 366,660 | 348,986 | -4.8 |
| 25 to 29 years | 3,825,131 | 3,772,061 | -1.4 | 506,250 | 485,764 | -4.0 |
| 30 to 34 years | 4,539,755 | 4,486,961 | -1.2 | 555,747 | 536,369 | -3.5 |
| 35 to 39 years | 4,843,340 | 4,793,523 | -1.0 | 526,642 | 511,421 | -2.9 |
Source: Expected numbers of women derived from 1960 Census of Population, Final report PC(2)-3A, Women by Number of Children Ever Born, tables 2 to 5. Tabulated numbers from tables 19, 20, and 42 of present report.
The effect of the shortages in numbers of women on the birth rates depends on the relative fertility of the women in the deleted records and of the women in the remaining records. At ages under 25, the remaining records were somewhat selective of women ever married with one or more children ever born. This fact can be seen indirectly from table B by comparing the percent underrepresented for all women torn in 1940 to 1944 with the percent underrepresented for approximately the same cohort (i.e., women 15 to 19 years old in 1960) who were ever married and had one or more children ever born; and by comparing data for other cohorts in a similar manner. At ages 15-19 and 20-24, the percent underrepresented is higher for all women than for the mothers ever married, reflecting the effect of relatively fewer deletions for mothers ever married than for other women. At ages 25-29 and above, there is little selective effect.
Table C presents rates of children ever born per 1,000 women, by age, as obtained from tabulations for the present report and as obtained from another report of the 1960 Census. The close agreement of the rates from the two sources of data indicates that the deletions had little effect on rates of children ever born.
Table C. Comparison of Data in the Present Report and Report PC(2)-3a- Children Ever Born Per 1,000 Women 15 To 39 Years Old and Per 1,000 Mothers, By color, And age of Woman, For the United States: 1960
(Based on 5-percent sample)
| color and age of mother | All women | Women ever married with one or more children ever born | ||
| Present report | Report PC(2)-3A | Present report | Report PC(2)-3A | |
| White | ||||
| 15 to 19 years | 116 | 117 | 1,289 | 1,353 |
| 20 to 24 years | 998 | 993 | 1,812 | 1,826 |
| 25 to 29 years | 1,945 | 1,960 | 2,471 | 2,477 |
| 30 to 34 years | 2,381 | 2,398 | 2,831 | 2,837 |
| 35 to 39 years | 2,458 | 2,471 | 2,918 | 2,925 |
| Nonwhite | ||||
| 15 to 19 years | 197 | 202 | 1,569 | 1,676 |
| 20 to 24 years | 1,288 | 1,288 | 2,367 | 2,421 |
| 25 to 29 years | 2,290 | 2,333 | 3,208 | 3,242 |
| 30 to 34 years | 2,831 | 2,852 | 3,709 | 3,735 |
| 35 to 39 years | 2,874 | 2,902 | 3,855 | 3,888 |
Data on childspacing derived from the 1960 Census have a high degree of comparability with data on fertility histories occasionally obtained in the Current Population Survey (CPS). However, the CPS obtains information on the month of birth instead of the calendar quarter, thereby enabling more precise measurements of childspacing intervals than are possible from the 1960 Census data. Also, information on birth dates is obtained in the CPS for children who have died or left home, as well as for children present, whereas birth dates for absent children are estimated for the 1960 Census child- spacing tabulations. Therefore, there is no technical need in the CPS to eliminate from the tabulations women who are so old or have been married so long that many of their children have grown up and left home. The proportion of nonresponses to questions on children ever born and on characteristics of women is smaller in the CPS than in a decennial census. On the other hand, the CPS data on childspacing are based on samples of only 35,000 households (August 1959 CPS) or 50,000 households (June 1965 CPS), and therefore are subject to considerably greater Sampling Variability than the decennial census data. The 1960 Census data in several ways have a wider coverage of persons in group quarters, including inmates of institutions, than the CPS data. This is one reason why the proportion of women ever married tends to be a little higher in the CPS than in a decennial census. Illustrative comparisons of data from the August 1959 CPS with data from the present report are presented in table D.
The usual practice of the Bureau of the Census is to present rates and percentages that are rounded upward in the last digit shown if the next digit would be 5 or more. However, the tabulation program used for the present report in many instances presents rates and percentages that are not rounded up.
Table D. Percent Ever Married And Number Of Children Ever Born Per 1,000 Women By Successive ages Of Women For White Women Born In 1925 To 1929, For The United States: 1960 Census And August 1959 Current Population Survey (Data tallied to midpoint of successive ages. Census data based on 5-percent sample. Current Population Survey (CPS) data based on sample of about 35,000 households)
1Data adjusted for the part of the cohort that has not attained the midpoint of the stated age.
Source: Census data from table 19 of this report. CPS data from Current Population Reports, Series P-20, No. 108, "Marriage, Fertility, and Childspacing: August 1959," tables 5 and 7.
In tables presenting cumulated births adjusted for the part of a cohort that has not reached an age or marriage duration, certain group totals were independently adjusted, with the result that data by some characteristics, e.g., detailed marital status, add to a total that differs slightly from the independently adjusted group total.
Table D. Percent Ever Married And Number Of Children Ever Born Per 1,000 Women By Successive ages Of Women For White Women Born In 1925 To 1929, For The United States: 1960 Census And August 1959 Current Population Survey (Data tallied to midpoint of successive ages. Census data based on 5-percent sample. Current Population Survey (CPS) data based on sample of about 35,000 households)
| age | Percent ever married | Children Ever Born per 1,000 women | ||
| Census | CPS | Census | CPS | |
| 15 years | 2.1 | 1.9 | 8 | 5 |
| 16 years | 5.3 | 5.1 | 22 | 16 |
| 17 years | 11.1 | 10.5 | 50 | 40 |
| 18 years | 20.7 | 20.4 | 103 | 94 |
| 19 years | 32.9 | 33.5 | 193 | 175 |
| 20 years | 45.6 | 46.2 | 322 | 300 |
| 21 years | 57.5 | 57.8 | 483 | 468 |
| 22 years | 67.1 | 68.1 | 662 | 638 |
| 23 years | 73.9 | 76.5 | 849 | 838 |
| 24 years | 78.8 | 82.0 | 1,041 | 1,042 |
| 25 years | 82.4 | 86.0 | 1,235 | 1,258 |
| 26 years | 85.0 | 88.4 | 1,424 | 1,477 |
| 27 years | 86.9 | 90.0 | 1,606 | 1,667 |
| 28 years | 88.4 | 91.1 | 1,778 | 1,853 |
| 29 years | 89.6 | 92.3 | 1,936 | 2,035 |
| 30 years | 90.5 | 193.2 | 2,082 | 12,192 |
1Data adjusted for the part of the cohort that has not attained the midpoint of the stated age.
Source: Census data from table 19 of this report. CPS data from Current Population Reports, Series P-20, No. 108, "Marriage, Fertility, and Childspacing: August 1959," tables 5 and 7.
In tables presenting cumulated births adjusted for the part of a cohort that has not reached an age or marriage duration, certain group totals were independently adjusted, with the result that data by some characteristics, e.g., detailed marital status, add to a total that differs slightly from the independently adjusted group total.
In general, the urban population comprises all persons living in Urbanized Areas and in places of 2,500 inhabitants or more outside Urbanized Areas. More specifically, according to the definition adopted for use in the 1960 Census, the urban population comprises all persons living in (a) places of 2,500 inhabitants or more incorporated as cities, boroughs, villages, and towns (except towns in New England, New York, and Wisconsin); (b) the densely settled urban fringe, whether incorporated or unincorporated, of Urbanized Areas; (c) towns in New England and townships in New Jersey and Pennsylvania which contain no incorporated municipalities as subdivisions and have either 25,000 inhabitants or more or a population of 2,500 to 25,000 and a density of 1,500 persons or more per square mile; (d) counties in States other than the New England States, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania that have no incorporated municipalities within their boundaries and have a density of 1,500 persons or more per square mile; and (e) unincorporated places of 2,500 inhabitants or more. The population not classified as urban constitutes the rural population.
The rural population is subdivided into the rural- farm population, which comprises all rural residents living on farms, and the rural-nonfarm population, which comprises the remaining rural population. In the 1960 Census, the farm population consists of persons living in rural territory on places of 10 or more acres from which sales of farm products amounted to $50 or more in 1959 or on places of less than 10 acres from which sales of farm products amounted to $250 or more in 1959- All persons living in group quarters are classified as nonfarm except the relatively few living in workers' quarters (including quarters for migratory agricultural workers) that are located on a farm or ranch.
An Urbanized Area contains at least one city of 50,000 inhabitants or more in 1960 and the surrounding settled incorporated places and unincorporated areas that meet certain criteria relating to population density or land use. Persons residing in Urbanized Areas are included in the urban population. In this report, data are shown for the total urban population and for Central Cities of Urbanized Areas. The largest city in an Urbanized Area is always a central city. An additional city may be classified as a central city on the basis of its size in relation to that of the largest city.
The age classification is based on the age of the person in completed years, as determined from the reply to a question on month and year of birth.
The term "color" refers to the division of population into two groups, white and nonwhite. The color group designated as "nonwhite" consists of such races as the Negro, American Indian, Japanese, Chinese, Filipino, Korean, Hawaiian, Asian Indian, Eskimo, Aleut, and Malayan races. Persons of Mexican birth or ancestry who are not definitely of Indian or other nonwhite race are classified as white.
The data on Years of School Completed were derived from the answers to the two questions: (a) "What is the highest grade (or year) of regular school he has ever attended?" and (b) "Did he finish this grade (or year)?" Enumerators were instructed to obtain the approximate equivalent grade in the American school system for persons whose highest grade of attendance "as in a foreign school system, whose highest level of attendance was in an ungraded school, whose highest level of schooling was measured by "readers," or whose Gaining by a tutor was regarded as qualifying under the "regular" school definition. Persons were to answer "No" to the second question if they were attending school, had completed only part of a grade before they dropped out, or failed to pass the last grade attended.
The number in each category of highest grade of school completed represents the combination of (a) persons who reported that they had attended the indicated grade and finished it, and (b) those who had attended the next higher grade but had not finished it.
The questions on educational attainment applied only to progress in "regular" schools. Regular schooling is that which may advance a person toward an elementary school certificate or high school diploma, or a college, university, or professional degree. Schooling that was not obtained in a regular school and schooling from a tutor or through correspondence courses were counted only if the credits obtained were regarded as transferable to a school in the regular school system. Schooling which is generally regarded as not regular includes that which is given in nursery schools, in specialized vocational, trade, or business schools; in on-the-job training; and through correspondence courses.
Elementary school, as defined here, includes grades 1 to 8, and high school includes grades 9 to 12. College includes junior or community colleges, regular it-year colleges, and graduate or professional schools.
The number in each category of highest grade of school completed represents the combination of (a) persons who reported that they had attended the indicated grade and finished it, and (b) those who had attended the next higher grade but had not finished it.
The questions on educational attainment applied only to progress in "regular" schools. Regular schooling is that which may advance a person toward an elementary school certificate or high school diploma, or a college, university, or professional degree. Schooling that was not obtained in a regular school and schooling from a tutor or through correspondence courses were counted only if the credits obtained were regarded as transferable to a school in the regular school system. Schooling which is generally regarded as not regular includes that which is given in nursery schools, in specialized vocational, trade, or business schools; in on-the-job training; and through correspondence courses.
Elementary school, as defined here, includes grades 1 to 8, and high school includes grades 9 to 12. College includes junior or community colleges, regular it-year colleges, and graduate or professional schools.
This classification refers to the marital status of the person at the time of enumeration. Persons classified as "married" comprise, therefore, both those who have been married only once and those who remarried after having been widowed or divorced. Persons reported as separated (either legally separated or otherwise absent from the spouse because of marital discord) are classified as a subcategory of married persons with spouse absent. The enumerators were instructed to report persons in common-law marriages as married and persons whose only marriage had been annulled as single. Persons "ever married" are those in the categories married (including separated), widowed, and divorced.
A married woman with "husband present" is a woman whose husband was enumerated as a member of the same household even though he may have been temporarily absent on business or vacation, visiting, in a hospital, etc., at the time of enumeration. Women classified as "married, husband absent" include both those who are separated and those with their husband absent for other reasons.
Whether or not the woman was married more than once was determined by a direct question for all women ever married.
A married woman with "husband present" is a woman whose husband was enumerated as a member of the same household even though he may have been temporarily absent on business or vacation, visiting, in a hospital, etc., at the time of enumeration. Women classified as "married, husband absent" include both those who are separated and those with their husband absent for other reasons.
Whether or not the woman was married more than once was determined by a direct question for all women ever married.
In the 1960 Census, persons in the sample who had ever been married were asked the date of their first marriage; this information was tabulated in terms of year or quarter and year. Thus, direct information was obtained for this report on year of first marriage for persons married (including separated), widowed, or divorced. All women who first married in the same period may be regarded as members of the same marriage cohort.
The number of years since the woman's first marriage was derived for successively later dates by subtraction of the date of first marriage from each later date and represents the interval in completed Years since First Marriage.
age at first marriage was derived by subtraction of the date of first marriage from the woman's birth date, and represents age in completed years at first marriage.
The number of years since the woman's first marriage was derived for successively later dates by subtraction of the date of first marriage from each later date and represents the interval in completed Years since First Marriage.
age at first marriage was derived by subtraction of the date of first marriage from the woman's birth date, and represents age in completed years at first marriage.
The number of Years since Remarriage of a woman was determined only for remarried women living with a husband married once. The husband's date of first marriage was the remarriage date for the woman. The procedure was otherwise similar to that given in the section for Years since first marriage.
The data on Employment Status relate to the calendar week prior to the date on which the respondents filled their Household Questionnaires or were interviewed by enumerators. This week is not the same for all respondents because not all persons were enumerated during the same week.
Employed persons comprise all civilians 14 years old and over who were either (a) "at work"-those who did any work for pay or profit, or worked without pay for 15 hours or more on a family farm or in a family business; or (b) were "with a job but not at work"-those who did not work and were not looking for work but had a job or business from which they were temporarily absent because of bad weather, industrial dispute, vacation, illness, or other personal reasons.
Persons are classified as unemployed if they were 14 years old and over and not "at work" but looking for work. A person is considered as looking for work not only if he actually tried to find work but also if he had made such efforts recently (i.e., within the past 60 days) and was awaiting the results of these efforts. Persons waiting to be called back to a job from which they had been laid off or furloughed are also counted as unemployed.
The "civilian labor force" includes all persons classified as employed or unemployed, as described above. The "labor force" also includes members of the Armed Forces (persons on active duty with the United States Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard).
Persons "not in the labor force" comprise all those 14 years old and over who are not classified as members of the labor force, including persons doing only incidental unpaid family work (less than 15 hours during the week).
Employed persons comprise all civilians 14 years old and over who were either (a) "at work"-those who did any work for pay or profit, or worked without pay for 15 hours or more on a family farm or in a family business; or (b) were "with a job but not at work"-those who did not work and were not looking for work but had a job or business from which they were temporarily absent because of bad weather, industrial dispute, vacation, illness, or other personal reasons.
Persons are classified as unemployed if they were 14 years old and over and not "at work" but looking for work. A person is considered as looking for work not only if he actually tried to find work but also if he had made such efforts recently (i.e., within the past 60 days) and was awaiting the results of these efforts. Persons waiting to be called back to a job from which they had been laid off or furloughed are also counted as unemployed.
The "civilian labor force" includes all persons classified as employed or unemployed, as described above. The "labor force" also includes members of the Armed Forces (persons on active duty with the United States Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard).
Persons "not in the labor force" comprise all those 14 years old and over who are not classified as members of the labor force, including persons doing only incidental unpaid family work (less than 15 hours during the week).
The data on weeks worked in 1959 pertain to the number of different weeks during 1959 in which a person did any work for pay or profit (including paid vacation and sick leave) or worked without pay on a family farm or in a family business. Weeks of active service in the Armed Forces are also included.
The "Year Last Worked" pertains to the most recent year in which a person did any work for pay or profit, or worked without pay on a family farm or in a family business. Active service in the Armed Forces is also included.
The data on occupation in this report are for employed persons and refer to the job held during the week for which Employment Status was reported. For persons employed at two or more jobs, the data refer to the job at which the person worked the greatest number of hours. The occupation statistics presented here are based on the detailed system developed for the 1960 Census; see 1960 Census of Population, Classified Index of Occupations and Industries, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1960.
Information on income for the calendar year 1959 was requested from all persons 14 years old and over in the sample. "Total income" is the sum of amounts reported separately for wage or salary income, self- employment income, and other income. Wage or salary Income is defined as the total money earnings received for work performed as an employee. It represents the amount received before deductions for personal income taxes, Social Security, bond purchases, union dues, etc. Self-employment income is defined as net money income (gross receipts minus operating expenses) from a business, farm, or professional enterprise in which the person was engaged on his own account. Other income includes money income received from such sources as net rents, interest, dividends, Social Security benefits, pensions, veterans' payments, unemployment insurance, and public assistance or other governmental payments, and periodic receipts from insurance policies or annuities. Not included as income are money received from the sale of property (unless the recipient was engaged in the business of selling such property), the value of income "in kind," withdrawals of bank deposits, money borrowed, tax refunds, and gifts and lump-sum inheritances or insurance payments.
In the statistics on family income, the combined incomes of all members of each family are treated as a single amount. Although the time period covered by the income statistics is the calendar year 1959, the composition of families refers to the time of enumeration. For most of the families, however, the income reported was received by persons who were members of the family throughout 1959.
In the statistics on family income, the combined incomes of all members of each family are treated as a single amount. Although the time period covered by the income statistics is the calendar year 1959, the composition of families refers to the time of enumeration. For most of the families, however, the income reported was received by persons who were members of the family throughout 1959.
