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When the census was first conducted in 1790, the enslaved population constituted a majority of the population in almost 1 of every 7 U.S. counties, according to a Social Explorer analysis of the nation’s first decennial Census. The headcount found more than 692,000 enslaved peoples – about 18 percent of the total 3.9 million people in the new country.
Most of the 39 majority-enslaved counties were in Virginia, with only 10 in the Carolinas, Georgia, Virginia, and Maryland. All counties in Massachusetts and Vermont, as well as one New Hampshire county, reported no enslaved peoples.
Use Social Explorer’s award-winning customizable mapping tools to study the demographics of slavery during the nation’s earliest years.
Enslaved Population in the U.S. in 1790. Click here to explore further.
