Father's Day Facts

From the Census Bureau's website, here are some facts about Father's Day and fathers:

The idea of Father's Day was conceived slightly more than a century ago by Sonora Dodd of Spokane, Wash., while she listened to a Mother's Day sermon in 1909. Dodd wanted a special day to honor her father, William Smart, a widowed Civil War veteran who was left to raise his six children on a farm. A day in June was chosen for the first Father's Day celebration — 101 years ago, June 19, 1910, proclaimed by Spokane's mayor because it was the month of Smart's birth. The first presidential proclamation honoring fathers was issued in 1966 when President Lyndon Johnson designated the third Sunday in June as Father's Day. Father's Day has been celebrated annually since 1972 when President Richard Nixon signed the public law that made it permanent.

154,000 - Estimated number of stay-at-home dads in 2010. These married fathers with children younger than 15 have remained out of the labor force for at least one year primarily so they can care for the family while their wives work outside the home. These fathers cared for 287,000 children. Source: America's Families and Living Arrangements <http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/hh-fam.html>

 1.8 million - Number of single fathers in 2010; 15 percent of single parents were men. Source: America's Families and Living Arrangements <http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/hh-fam.html>

70.1 million - Estimated number of fathers across the nation. Source: Unpublished data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation 

For more facts and information, visit the Census Bureau website. The Arkansas State Library is an affiliate of the State Data Center at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, part of the Census Bureau network in the states.  We have census information for past years, and our librarians can provide individual training on using the Census Bureau databases. If you have any questions, please call the Reference Desk at (501) 682-2053, or send a question through the Ask a Librarian form.

Economic Census Data Conference

The Census Bureau is conducting conferences and hands-on workshops for data users on the 2007 Economic Census during 2010.

• New users learn about the range of data about businesses available from the Census Bureau, including both the Economic Census and more frequent data sets.
• Experienced users learn about new features of the data, comparability issues, and qualifications of the data.
• Attendees gain skills in accessing Economic Census data in American FactFinder.
• Attendees have the opportunity to tell others about their own practical applications of the data and learn what others are doing. 

The Arkansas State Library will be hosting 2 of these conferences on September20th, from 8:30 AM to Noon, and from 1 PM to 4:30 PM.  For more information about the conference or to register for a session, visit the Census Bureau  Economic Census Conference web site or send a reference request to Ask a Librarian.

Labor Day Facts and Figures

Workers in the United States will celebrate Labor Day this coming Monday. Here are some facts and figures about Labor Day taken from the U.S. Census Bureau:

• The first observance of Labor Day is believed to have been a parade of 10,000 workers on Sept. 5, 1882, in New York City, organized by Peter J. McGuire, a Carpenters and Joiners Union secretary. By 1893, more than half the states were observing a “Labor Day” on one day or another, and Congress passed a bill to establish a federal holiday in 1894. President Grover Cleveland signed the bill soon afterward, designating the first Monday in September as Labor Day.
• 154.4 million: Number of people 16 and older in the nation's labor force in May 2010.
  Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf
• 7.6 million: Number of workers who hold down more than one job. So-called moonlighters comprise 5 percent of the working population. Of these, 4 million work full time at their primary job and part time at their other job. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, as cited in the Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2010, Table 596 http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/
• -5.3%: Percentage decline in employment in the United States, between September 2008 and September 2009. Employment declined in 329 of the 334 largest counties (large counties are defined as having employment levels of 75,000 or more). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cewqtr.pdf
• 17.7 million: Number of commuters who leave for work between midnight and 5:59 a.m. They represent 13 percent of all commuters. Source: 2008 American Community Survey http://www.census.gov/acs/www/Products/users_guide/index.htm

For more information about American workers and the Census Bureau, follow the link to the Census Bureau Fact page or the Census homepage.

Get Counted!

Last week I wrote about taxes, but that is not the only activity this season - it is also time for the decennial census. Every 10 years, the people of the United States are given the opportunity to be counted. Census questionnaires are being mailed out to every household in the country, and your response will help the government better allocate funds to improve your community.

Here are some facts about the history of the census, taken from the Census.gov website:

• The first census began more than a year after the inauguration of President George Washington. At its conclusion, the U.S. population totaled approximately 3.9 million and the largest cities were New York, NY; Philadelphia, PA; and Boston, MA.

• Following the abolition of slavery in 1865, ex-slaves were named in the 1870 census for the first time. Before then, they were simply recorded numerically by age.

• The 1900 census included Hawaii (annexed in 1898) for the first time. Census takers counted approximately 154,001 inhabitants on the islands.

• The 1940 census collected information about the population and its housing. It was also the first decennial census to use advanced statistical sampling techniques. Sampling allowed the addition of a number of demographic questions without unduly increasing the overall burden on respondents and data processing.

• Census 2000 incorporated a $167 million advertising campaign to reach every person living in the United States. This advertising contributed to a reversal in the decline of response rates experienced since the 1970 census.

For more information about this year's census, visit the 2010 Census page. If you have questions, or need help filling out your form, the English language assistance number is 1-866-872-6868.