St. Louis - Demographics

Demographics

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±%
1810	1,600	—
1820		—
1830	4,977	—
1840	16,469	+230.9%
1850	77,860	+372.8%
1860	160,773	+106.5%
1870	310,864	+93.4%
1880	350,518	+12.8%
1890	451,770	+28.9%
1900	575,238	+27.3%
1910	687,029	+19.4%
1920	772,897	+12.5%
1930	821,960	+6.3%
1940	816,048	−0.7%
1950	856,796	+5.0%
1960	750,026	−12.5%
1970	622,236	−17.0%
1980	452,801	−27.2%
1990	396,685	−12.4%
2000	348,189	−12.2%
2010	319,294	−8.3%
2011 estimate	318,069	−0.4%
2011 estimate

St. Louis grew slowly until the American Civil War, when industrialization and immigration sparked a boom, and it reached its peak population in 1950. That year, the Census Bureau reported St. Louis' population as 82% White and 17.9% African American. After World War II, St. Louis began losing population to the suburbs, first because of increased demand for new housing, and later, white flight.

According to the 2010 United States Census, St. Louis had 319,294 people living in 142,057 households, of which 67,488 households were families. The population density was 5,158.2 people per square mile (1,990.6/km²). About 24% of the population was 19 or younger, 9% were 20 to 24, 31% were 25 to 44, 25% were 45 to 64, and 11% were 65 or older. The median age was about 34 years.

The population was about 49.2% African American, 43.9% White (42.2% Non-Hispanic White), 2.9% Asian, 0.3% Native American/Alaska Native, and 2.4% reporting two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.5% of the population.

The African American population is mostly centered in the north side of the city. Among the Asian American population, the largest ethnic group is Vietnamese (0.9%), followed by Chinese (0.6%) and Asian Indians (0.5%). The Vietnamese community is most prevalent in the Dutchtown neighborhood; Chinese are concentrated in the Central West End. People of Mexican descent are the largest Latino group, and make up 2.2% of St. Louis' population. They have the highest concentration in the Dutchtown and Gravois Park neighborhoods.

In 2000, the median income for a household in the city was $29,156, and the median income for a family was $32,585. Males had a median income of $31,106; females, $26,987. Per capita income was $18,108.

Some 19% of the city's housing units were vacant, and slightly less than half of these were vacant structures not for sale or rent.

In 2010, St. Louis' per-capita rate of online charitable donations and volunteerism were among the highest among major U.S cities.

United States Census Population
Year	1860	1870	1880	1890	1900	1910	1920	1930	1940	1950	1960	1970	1980	1990	2000	2010
Population	160,773	310,864	350,518	451,770	575,238	687,029	772,897	821,960	816,048	856,796	750,026	622,236	452,801	396,685	348,189	319,294
U.S. Rank	8	4	6	5	4	4	6	7	8	8	10	18	26	34	51	58