Historical Statistics of the United States: Millennial Edition -- A Preview

Michael R. Haines, Colgate University

The Historical Statistics of the United States has been an essential reference work for many years. The first edition appeared in 1945, the second edition in 1957, and the Bicentennial Edition in 1975. Previous editions were compiled and edited by the U.S. Bureau of the Census. That agency no longer plans to continue that work. In response, a group of scholars (Professors Richard Sutch and Susan Carter at the University of California at Riverside; Alan Olmstead and Scott Gartner at the University of California at Davis; Gavin Wright at Stanford University; and Michael Haines at Colgate University) undertook to revise and expand the Bicentennial Edition. The publisher is Cambridge University Press. Most existing series have been updated until a recent date, and many new series have been added. Several new chapters have also been added. The Millennial Edition will appear as four or five printed volumes as well as an on-line electronic edition available via subscription. The chapters have been compiled and edited by a wide variety of scholars and specialists. The Millennial Edition is scheduled to appear in 2005. This presentation will highlight some of the features of this new edition.