Defiance County vs. Ohio Comparative Trends Analysis: Population Growth and Change, 1969-2022 Introduction Defiance County: 2022 Population = 38,187 2022 Percent of State = 0.32% Ohio: 2022 Population = 11,756,058 2022 Percent of U.S. = 3.53% 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 Defiance County with comparisons to Ohio and the nation at large. This analysis features alternative approaches toward discussing, diagnosing and comparing Defiance County vs. Ohio'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 Defiance County's annual population for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate population patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Defiance County's population rose from 36,491 in 1969 to 38,187 in 2022, for a net gain of 1,696, or 4.65%. 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 Ohio's annual population for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate population patterns over time. During this 54-year period, Ohio's population rose from 10,563,000 in 1969 to 11,756,058 in 2022, for a net gain of 1,193,058, or 11.29%. 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 Defiance County's population growth in a broader context by offering direct comparisons across time with Ohio, 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. Defiance County's overall population growth was 4.65% over 1969-2022 trailed Ohio's increase of 11.29%, and fell below the United States' increase of 65.57%. Population as a Percent of the Ohio Total: 1969-2022 Figure 4. Another interesting and insightful way of contrasting the population growth of Defiance County is to trace its individual percentage contributions to Ohio's statewide population over time, as shown in Figure 4. A rising share means a region's population grew faster, or declined less, than Ohio's population, while a declining share shows it grew more slowly. In 1969, Defiance County's population comprised 0.35% of Ohio's population, while in 2022 it totaled 0.32% thereby yielding a -0.02% share-shift.
Defiance County Population: Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022 Figure 5. Figure 5 highlights the short-run pattern of Defiance 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, Defiance County's population grew at an annual rate of 0.09% over 1970-2022. The county recorded its highest growth in 1979 (1.80%) and posted its lowest growth in 1982 (-1.39%). In 2022, Defiance County's population declined by -0.08% Defiance 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 illustrates the annual percent change in Defiance County's population since 1970, but this time they are displayed with average growth rates for the decade of the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020-2022. During the 1970s, Defiance County's annual population growth rate averaged 0.90%. It averaged -0.15% in the 1980s, 0.11% during the 1990s, -0.16% throughout the 2000s, -0.17% during the 2010s, -0.18% 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 Defiance County noted in the previous graph with the corresponding decade averages for Ohio and the nation. As the chart reveals, Defiance County's average annual population growth outpaced Ohio's average in the 1970s (0.90% vs. 0.22%), lagged Ohio's average during the 1980s (-0.15% vs. 0.03%), trailed Ohio's average throughout the 1990s (0.11% vs. 0.46%), trailed Ohio's average throughout the 2000s (-0.16% vs. 0.17%), posted below Ohio's average in the 2010s (-0.17% vs. 0.22%), and trailed Ohio's average over the 3 year period of the current decade, 2020-2022 (-0.18% vs. -0.09%). Finally, relative to nationwide population growth trends, Defiance County posted below the nation over the 1970s (0.90% vs. 1.10%), fell under the nation throughout the 1980s (-0.15% vs. 0.95%), recorded underneath the nation during the 1990s (0.11% vs. 1.23%), lagged the nation over the 2000s (-0.16% vs. 0.95%), posted below the nation in the 2010s (-0.17% vs. 0.74%), and lagged the nation over 2020-2022 (-0.18% vs. 0.31%).
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