The economic recession in 1958 may be reflected in relatively low interstate migration rate of non-whites in the period between April 1958 and April 1959, as compared with the rate in most preceding years. Of the 171 million civilians 1 year old and over of all races who were living in the United States in April 1959, about 13.1 percent had lived in a different house in the same county a year earlier, about 6.1 percent had lived in a different county, and about 0.5 percent had been living abroad (table 1). Of these who had migrated from a different county, about half had come from a different State.

About nine out of every ten persons 1 year old and over in the United States in April 1959 had moved at least once in their lifetime (table A). Most of those reported as having always lived in the same house were children. Of the population 18 years old and over, only 1.5 percent had always lived in the same house. The proportion of persons of all ages who had never moved was slightly higher for nonwhites than for whites. The difference may simply reflect the higher proportion of children in the nonwhite population.

Approximately 35 percent of all persons who did not move in the period April 1958-1959 (i.e., non-movers) had moved at least once between January 1955 and April 1958 (table 11). The proportion of persons who had made one or more moved during that period reached a peak of 67 percent in the ages 22 to 29 years old, the proportion decreasing thereafter with age. Conversely, 80 percent of persons 75 years of age and over had made their last move before 1955.

The data in this report are estimates based on the Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey. Since the estimates are based on a sample, they are subject to sampling variability. Particular care should be used with regard to smaller figures, as well as small differences between figures, as explained in the section on source and reliability of these estimates.