POPULATION—CENSUS OF 1950
POPULATION OF MARYLAND: APRIL 1, 1950

The total population of Maryland on April 1, 1950, was 2,343,001,
according to final' figures for the State released by the Bureau of the
Census, Department of Commerce. During the previous 10 years, the
population of the State increased by 521,757, or 28.6 percent, over the
1,821,244 inhabitants enumerated in 1940. Among the States, Mary-
land ranked twenty-fourth in population. The 1950 population was
more than seven times as large as its population in 1790 when it was
enumerated in the first Federal census.

According to the new urban definition, Maryland had 1,615,902 per-
sons living in urban territory and 727,099 in rural territory. The
urban population accounted for 69.0 percent of the total population
of the State.

There are 23 counties and I independent city—Baltimore—in Mary-
land. Between 1940 and 1950, 20 of the counties and Baltimore city
increased in population. The rates of change for the counties ranged
from a decline of 3.3 percent for Garrett County to an increase of
117.0 percent for Prince Georges County. The largest numerical in-
crease was experienced in Baltimore County, which had a gain of
114,448. Nearly three-fourths of the increase in the population of the
State was accounted for by Baltimore, Prince Georges, and Mont-
gomery Counties and Baltimore city. The counties in Maryland
ranged in size from Calvert with a population of 12,100 to Baltimore
with a population of 270,273.

In 1950 there were 149 places incorporated as cities, towns, and
villages in Maryland and 15 unincorporated places of 1,000 inhabi-
tants or more. There were 1,310,869 persons living in the incorporated
places, 95,611 of whom were in the 118 places of fewer than 2,500
inhabitants. Of the 28,762 inhabitants of the unincorporated places,
20,804 were in the 13 places of 1,000 to 2,500 inhabitants. The incor-
porated places ranged in size from Highland Beach town with a
population of 5 to Baltimore city with a population of 949,708.

Under the urban definition established for use in the 1950 Census,
urban territory has been defined to comprise (a) places of 2,500
inhabitants or more incorporated as cities, boroughs, towns,' and
villages; (b) the densely settled urban fringe, including both incor-
porated and unincorporated areas, around cities of 50,000 or more;
and (c) unincorporated places of 2,500 inhabitants or more outside
any urban fringe. All other territory is classified as rural. Accord-
ing to the definition used in previous censuses, urban territory was
designated as all incorporated places of 2,500 inhabitants or more and
areas (usually minor civil divisions) classified as urban under special
rules relating to population size and density.