The Size and Distribution of Two Minority Population Groups in TexasBureau of Business Researc

Holz, Robert K.

English

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Bureau of Business Research College and Graduate School of Business, University of Texas at Austin October 1994 The Size and Distribution of Two Minority Population Groups in Texas In the 1990 official census of U.S. population, Texas had a recorded population of 16,986,510. Although this total is disputed as undercounted, it will remain the official state population figure until the year 2000 census, unless legal action forces the acceptance of an amended figure . In the three and one-half years since the census was last taken, the Texas population has continued to increase, and it is estimated that more than 18 million persons currently reside in the state, making Texas second only to California in population. In the 1990 census, 12,787,521 people, or 75.3 percent of the Texas population, were listed as white (table 1). Black citizens of Texas numbered 2,018,543, or 11.9 percent of the total popula-tion.1 All other races made up 12.8 percent of the Texas population. This group included American Indians, Eskimos, and Aleutians (0.4 percent); Asians or Pacific Islanders (1.8 percent); and the category "other race" (10.6 percent). In addition to listing figures by race, the 1990 census also recorded persons of "Hispanic origin" (table 2). In 1990, 4,294,120 Texans, or 25.3 Table 1 Population of Texas by Race percent of the total state population, were of Hispanic origin. The census data on Hispanic origin are further broken down into whites (14.5 percent) and nonwhites (10.8 percent). We have mapped the distribution of the two largest minority groups in Texas, blacks and Hispanics.2 Our goal was to find different and innovative ways of mapping these population groups to give a clearer visual representation of their size and distribution within the state. The Size and Distribution of the Black Population in Texas Most black people in Texas reside in urban areas or in rural East Texas. Twelve counties, most in South and West Texas, reported no black population in 1990, while another three listed only one person. Figure 1 is a dot distribution map of blacks in Texas. This map clearly illus-trates the concentration of blacks in urban areas and in rural East Texas. West of Interstate High-way 35, the majority of black persons are concen-trated in the larger cities and towns such as El Paso, Midland-Odessa, Lubbock, and Amarillo. Note that the concentration in the larger urban areas such as Houston and Dallas is so large that the dots coalesce into a single mass. Of the 2,018,543 blacks who lived in Texas in 1990, 1,823,557, or 90.3 percent, lived in urban areas. Only 194,986, or 9.7 percent, lived American Indian, Asian or Other race in areas defined as rural and Eskimo, or Aleut Pacific Islander Total population White Black 16,986,510 12,787,521 2,01 8,543 69,872 3 15,072 Table 2 Population of Texas by Hispanic Origin just 4,872 of these black 1,795,502 persons lived on farms. Figure 2 is a map of black population aggregated by Total population 16,986,510 Hispanic origin (any race) 4,294,120 Hispanic origin (white) Hispanic origin (black) percentages. Eleven counties 2,466,642 Source: U.S. Census. 1990 1,827,478 in East and Central Texas contained 72 percent of Texas tftl I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I IJJr Figure 1 Distribution of the Black Population in Texas, 1990 Sources: Texas Department of Transportation; U.S. Census, 1990. D ~ • Figure 2 The Black Population in Texas, 1990 (percentages) This pattern represents 7 .2% of all blacks in Texas This pattern represents 20.8% of all blacks in Texas This pattern represents 72.0% of all blacks in Texas Source: U.S. Census, 1990. blacks. Over a half million blacks, almost 27 percent of the total black population in Texas, lived in Harris county. (Although the largest total number of black persons lived in Harris county, Waller county claimed the distinction of having the highest percentage of black population: 8,796 blacks accounted for 37 .6 per cent of the total Waller county population in 1990.) Of the re-maining black population, 20.8 percent lived in East and Central Texas counties. Note from figure 2 that few blacks lived south of Houston and San Antonio, along the Texas coast, near the Rio Grande border with Mexico, in the Pan-handle, or in the Trans Pecos area. In 1990, only 7 .2 percent of the Texas black population lived in this great sweep of country, almost two-thirds of the state. In South and West Texas, most of this small total black population lived in the urban-ized areas (figure 1). We can conclude then that the black population in Texas is predominately urban and that almost 93 percent live in approxi-mately the north, central, and eastern one-third of the state. (Table 3 lists the ten Texas counties with the largest total numbers of black persons.) The Size and Distribution of the Hispanic Population in Texas It is more difficult to map the Hispanic popula-tion of Texas because the Bureau of the Census struggles with the precise meaning of the term "Hispanic origin." To simplify the problem of mapping this population group, we used the aggregate or total figure for persons of Hispanic origin. Table 2 shows that about one-quarter, or 25.3 percent, of the Texas population was of Hispanic origin in 1990. But more than half of this group was enumerated as white and this was 14.5 percent of the total 1990 Texas population. The remaining 10.8 percent of the state popula-tion was counted as nonwhite. Figure 3 is a dot map of the Hispanic popula-tion. The lower Rio Grande Valley and the urban areas of San Antonio, Houston, Dallas, and El Paso stand out as major concentrations of total Hispanic population. Harris and Bexar counties show the largest total numbers of Hispanic peoples. More than one-quarter of the Hispanic population of Texas lived in just these two counties in 1990, while El Paso, Hidalgo, and Dallas counties combined contained another quarter. (Starr county in South Texas had the tftl I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I IJJr till I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I IJDr distinction of having the highest percentage of Hispanics of the total county population: the 39,390 Hispanics living there in 1990 accounted for 97 .2 percent of the total county population. ) The counties along the Texas-Mexico border, the Trans Pecos, and the southern Panhandle contained the highest percentages of Hispanic population. There are no counties in Texas that do not have some Hispanic population. The border and West Texas counties do not have large total numbers of people living in them. Figure 4 shows the Hispanic population aggregated by county. In 1990, eighteen counties, mostly around Houston and along IH-35 from San Antonio to Dallas, contained almost half (49.2 percent) of the Texas Hispanic population. The border counties contained another 38.7 percent. Note that Northeast Texas had just 4.2 percent of the total number of Hispanics in the state. (Table 4 lists the ten Texas counties with the largest total numbers of Hispanic population.) Summary The two largest minority population groups in Texas, blacks and Hispanics, have higher growth rates than the white population, and, when aggre-gated with other minority groups in Texas, the combined minority population will probably represent more than 50 percent of the total state population shortly after the turn of the century. The 1990 census found blacks in Texas living predominantly in urban areas, especially in Houston and Dallas. Rural blacks were found mostly in East Texas, east of IH-35, and north and east of Houston. Fewer than 8 percent of blacks-a total number not equal to the black population of Harris county-lived in South or County Harris Dallas Tarrant Bexar Jefferson Travis Fort Bend Galveston Bell Smith Table 3 Texas Counties with the Largest Black Populations, 1990 Population Percentage of total county population 541 ,180 19.02 369,597 19.95 140,740 12.03 84,670 7.14 74,412 31.08 63,173 l0.96 46,593 20.67 38,154 17.55 36,095 18.89 31,572 20.87 Source: U.S. Census, 1990. Figure 3 Distribution of the Hispanic Population in Texas, 1990 Sources: Texas Department of Transportation; U.S. Census, 1990. West Texas, with most of the black population of West Texas concentrated in that region's urban areas. The total Hispanic population was more than twice the total of the black population in 1990. Widely distributed, Hispanics were represented in all Texas counties. Because of the continuing historic settlement of Texas by Hispanic people through Mexico, the Texas-Mexico border and West Texas counties had the highest percentages of Hispanics within the total county populations. However, almost one-half of the total numbers of Hispanic Texans lived in the Houston area and along the IH-35 population corridor from San County Harris Bexar El Paso Hidalgo Dallas Cameron Nueces Tarrant Webb Travis Table 4 Texas Counties with the Largest Hispanic Populations, 1990 Population Percentage of total county population 644,935 22.88 589, 180 49.70 411,619 69.58 326,972 85.25 315,630 17 .04 212,995 81.88 152,051 52.23 139,879 11.95 125,069 93.87 121 ,689 21.11 Source: U.S. Census, 1990. till I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I IJir Jtll I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I IJDr Figure 4 The Hispanic Population in Texas, 1990 (percentages) This pattern represents 4.2% of all Hispanics in Texas This pattern represents 7.9% of all Hispanics in Texas This pattern represents 38.7% of all Hispanics in Texas This pattern represents 49.2% of all Hispanics in Texas Source: U.S. Census, 1990. Antonio to Dallas. The area of the state having the lowest Hispanic population were the counties of East Texas. Thus, the 1990 census showed that, except for the urban areas along IH-35 and Houston, the two minority population groups in Texas occupy distinctly different regional sections of the state. In other words, Hispanics are less numerous in the areas where blacks are most numerous. These two minority groups have distinct regions of population distribution in Texas. -Robert K. Holz Professor of Geography University of Texas at Austin Notes I. The term "black" is used here to be consistent with the figures reported in the U.S. Census, 1990. 2. The author wishes to thank Michael Parks and Gregory F. White for generating the maps used in this article. Jtll I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I IJDr tLtl I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I IJDr Employment and Unemployment Rate by Metropolitan Area Total nonagricultural employment Total employment Unemployment (thousands) (thousands) rate Percentage Percentage Area July 1994 July 1993 change July 1994 July 1993 change July 1994 Abilene 49.8 49.3 1.0 55 .6 54.9 1.3 5.8 Amarillo 85.9 82.4 4.2 105.3 100.2 5.1 4.4 Austin-San Marcos 466.8 444.0 5.1 560.3 525.I 6.7 3.9 Beaumont-Port Arthur 151.3 148.0 2.2 172.8 166.1 4.0 10.5 Brazoria 71.7 70.2 2.1 102.1 98.5 3.7 7.6 Browns vi lie-Harlingen 89.0 85.8 3.7 108.8 103.3 5.3 12.1 Bryan-College Station 60.2 58.4 3.1 66.7 63.5 5.0 3.6 Corpus Christi ·142.7 139.6 2.2 162.7 157.0 3.6 9.7 Dallas 1,544.6 1,473.7 4.8 1,643.2 1,543.0 6.5 5.6 El Paso 227.9 224.0 1.7 258.7 251.0 3.1 10.4 Fort Worth-Arlington 629.7 611.9 2.9 782.8 749.4 4.5 5.8 Galveston-Texas City 85.5 84.3 1.4 120.8 117.0 3.2 8.7 Houston 1,689.4 1,660.8 1.7 1,866.5 1,815.1 2.8 6.9 Killeen-Temple 86.8 82.9 4.7 104.9 99.2 5.7 5.4 Laredo 55.8 52.4 6.5 62.l 57.8 7.4 9.5 Longview-Marshall 80.5 78.4 2.7 94.3 90.8 3.9 8.8 Lubbock 104.0 101.9 2.1 117.0 113.0 3.5 5.2 McAllen-Edinburg-Mission 115.6 110.5 4.6 145.9 137.6 6.0 17.3 Odessa-Midland 91.6 90.9 0.8 111.3 109.4 1.7 7.9 San Angelo 39.7 38.9 2.1 48.7 47.2 3.2 5.3 San Antonio 584.2 569.4 2.6 674.3 650.9 3.6 5.7 Sherman-Denison 37.0 36.7 0.8 43.7 42.8 2.1 6.6 Texarkana 47.4 47.9 -1.0 53.0 52.6 0.8 9.5 Tyler 68.4 66.8 2.4 79.0 76.4 3.4 5.8 Victoria 32.5 32.0 1.6 40.5 39.0 3.8 6.5 Waco 87.5 84.3 3.8 94.5 89.7 5.4 5.6 Wichita Falls 53.8 52.9 1.7 61.0 59.I 3.2 6.3 Total Texas 7,708.2 7,483.0 3.0 8,966.1 8,607.9 4.2 6.8 Total United States 113,399.0 110,431.0 2.7 124,503.0 121,323.0 2.6 6.2 Note: Data are not seasonally adjusted. Figures for 1993 have undergone a major revision; previously published 1993 figures should no longer be used. Revised figures are available upon request. All 1994 figures are subject to revision. Sources: Texas Employment Commisson and U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics . r·--·····--... ···--··-·-······--·····--····--··· -1.65 1.60 1.55 1.50 1.45 1.40 1.35 1.30 '·('.,::··· 1.25 1.20 1.15 11.10 l1.05 1990 Nonagricultural Employment In Five Largest Texas Metropolitan Areas (January 1984= 1.00) Austin-San Marcos 1991 1992 1993 1994 1.65 1.60 1.55 1.50 1.45 1.40 1.35 1.30 1.25 1.20 1.15 1.10 Total Employment In Five Largest Texas Metropolitan Areas (January 1984= 1.00) Austin-San Marcos Houston San Antonio 1.05 -l----4-----1---+----+--1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 tLtl 1111 11 1111111111111111111111 I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I IJDr tSII I I l l i I l l I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I ltur Announcement The price for 1994 Directory of Texas Manu-facturers diskettes has been reduced 25 percent. Prices range from $750.00 for listings for the state to $225.00 for certain geographic regions . Diskettes in Macintosh format are available for a slightly higher cost. To order diskettes or to receive a free sample diskette and documentation, call (512) 471-5179. S'96tO NilSO SJUfVH rJ SOdWV:J 99f,!;t; 0£•• G ·1:td l Xl .:JO J\INO l\L]9-:J::>NJN3.J] ti Editor: Lois Glenn Shrout Assistant Editor: Sally Furgeson Texas Business Review is published six times a year (February, April, June, August, October, and December) by the Bureau of Business Re-search, Graduate School of Business, University of Texas at Austin. Subscriptions to Texas Busi-ness Review are available free upon request, as are back issues. The Bureau of Business Research serves as a primary source for economic and demographic data on the state of Texas. An integral part of UT Austin's Graduate School of Business, the Bureau is located on the sixth floor of the College of Business Administration building. ·palsanba.1 uoJpa.1.10:> ssa.1ppv 6~tL-£IL8L SIDC;}.L 'U!lSnv 6~tL xog Ud H~VJS:rn SSJNJSilS: .:10 ilVJ~ns: -......_.~ ~-- -- -~ -- ---------

The Size and Distribution of Two Minority Population Groups in Texas

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The Size and Distribution of Two Minority Population Groups in Texas

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