The Daily Yonder [1] blog began on July 14 an examination of what has happened to rural America during the last decade. Its post on that day [2] began to look at changes in population, ethnicity, age groups and education.
That day's post [2]has many interesting maps and charts that illustrate these changes.
The blog reports that, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, the nation’s total population increased 9.1% between 2000 and 2009, a total of 25.5 million people, but that "Population increases in rural counties lagged, however. The population of the nation’s 2,038 rural counties increased by just 2.9% in the decade."
It continues: "By the end of the decade, the United States had grown less rural. In 2000, 17.3% of the nation’s population lived in rural counties, which decreased to 16.4% just nine years later."