Esmeralda County vs. Nevada Comparative Trends Analysis: Population Growth and Change, 1969-2022 Introduction Esmeralda County: 2022 Population = 744 2022 Percent of State = 0.02% Nevada: 2022 Population = 3,177,772 2022 Percent of U.S. = 0.95% Attracting and retaining people to live, work, raise a family, and retire underlies the economic vitality of any region. Population growth is both a cause--and a consequence--of economic growth. Patterns of population growth and change reflect differences among regions to attract and retain people both as producers and consumers in their economy. The following graphs offer a broad overview of trends in the pattern of population growth and change of Esmeralda County with comparisons to Nevada and the nation at large. This analysis features alternative approaches toward discussing, diagnosing and comparing Esmeralda County vs. Nevada's population growth over 1969-2022. The data used are those compiled by the Regional Income and Product Divisions of the Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce. Population, 1969-2022 Figure 1. Figure 1 tracks Esmeralda County's annual population for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate population patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Esmeralda County's population rose from 585 in 1969 to 744 in 2022, for a net gain of 159, or 27.18%. NOTE: The county and state population totals reported by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) are from the Bureau of Census midyear (July 1) estimates. These estimates may differ from those prepared independently in some states by various agencies and/or universities. Population, 1969-2022 Figure 2. Figure 2 traces Nevada's annual population for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate population patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Nevada's population rose from 480,000 in 1969 to 3,177,772 in 2022, for a net gain of 2,697,772, or 562.04%. NOTE: The county and state population totals reported by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) are from the Bureau of Census midyear (July 1) estimates. These estimates may differ from those prepared independently in some states by various agencies and/or universities. Population Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022 Figure 3. Figure 3 shows Esmeralda County's population growth in a broader context by offering direct comparisons across time with Nevada, the United States. The growth indices shown here express each region's population in 1969 as a base figure of 100, and the populations in later years as a percentage of the 1969 base figure. This method allows for more direct comparison of differences in population growth between regions that may differ vastly in size. Esmeralda County's overall population growth was 27.18% over 1969-2022 trailed Nevada's increase of 562.04%, and fell below the United States' increase of 65.57%. Population as a Percent of the Nevada Total: 1969-2022 Figure 4. Another interesting and insightful way of contrasting the population growth of Esmeralda County is to trace its individual percentage contributions to Nevada's statewide population over time, as shown in Figure 4. A rising share means a region's population grew faster, or declined less, than Nevada's population, while a declining share shows it grew more slowly. In 1969, Esmeralda County's population comprised 0.12% of Nevada's population, while in 2022 it totaled 0.02% thereby yielding a -0.10% share-shift.
Esmeralda County Population: Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022 Figure 5. Figure 5 shows the short-run pattern of Esmeralda County's population growth by tracking the year-to-year percent change over 1970-2022. The average annual percent change for the entire 53-year period is also illustrated on this chart to provide a benchmark for gauging periods of relative high--and relative low--growth against the backdrop of the long-term average. On average, Esmeralda County's population grew at an annual rate of 0.64% over 1970-2022. The county recorded its highest growth in 1981 (28.55%) and posted its lowest growth in 1993 (-10.34%). In 2022, Esmeralda County's population grew by 1.50% Esmeralda County Population: Annual Percent Change and Decade Averages Over 1970-2022 Figure 6. Over the past five decades some counties have experienced extreme swings in growth, and often such swings have tended to coincide with the decades themselves. Figure 6 again traces the annual percent change in Esmeralda County's population since 1970, but this time they are overlayed with average growth rates for the decade of the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020-2022. During the 1970s, Esmeralda County's annual population growth rate averaged 2.73%. It averaged 6.15% throughout the 1980s, -2.83% during the 1990s, -1.90% in the 2000s, -0.92% throughout the 2010s, 0.59% thus far this decade (2020-2022). Population Growth: Average Annual Percent Change by Decade Figure 7. Figure 7 compares the decade average growth rates for Esmeralda County noted in the previous graph with the corresponding decade averages for Nevada and the nation. As the chart reveals, Esmeralda County's average annual population growth fell below Nevada's average during the 1970s (2.73% vs. 4.78%), led Nevada's average during the 1980s (6.15% vs. 4.05%), amounted to less than Nevada's average during the 1990s (-2.83% vs. 5.46%), amounted to less than Nevada's average throughout the 2000s (-1.90% vs. 3.33%), posted below Nevada's average in the 2010s (-0.92% vs. 1.35%), and posted below Nevada's average over the 3 year period of the current decade, 2020-2022 (0.59% vs. 1.17%). Finally, relative to nationwide population growth trends, Esmeralda County outgained the nation during the 1970s (2.73% vs. 1.10%), outperformed the nation throughout the 1980s (6.15% vs. 0.95%), trailed the nation in the 1990s (-2.83% vs. 1.23%), lagged the nation throughout the 2000s (-1.90% vs. 0.95%), posted below the nation throughout the 2010s (-0.92% vs. 0.74%), and led the nation over 2020-2022 (0.59% vs. 0.31%).
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