This report presents statistics on the social, economic, and housing characteristics of the population in low income areas of the 50 largest cities of the United States. A list of these cities and the census tract composition of the low-income areas within them are given at the end of the introduction. The statistics are based on the 1970 Census of Population.

The text consists of an introduction and Appendices A through E, which appear after the tables.

Content of the Tables

The tables in this report include data on the population of the 50 largest cities and the 4 largest counties in New York city, by residence in low-income areas. The population included in these data consists of all persons except inmates of institutions, members of Armed Forces living in barracks, college students living in dormitories, and unrelated individuals under 14 years old.

Most of the tables include information for all races, white, Negro, and persons of Spanish language. The "Spanish language" identification for the population of Spanish heritage is used consistently in all tables in this report, unlike 1970 census Volume I reports where there is some variation in presentation. ln the Volume I reports, data for persons of "Spanish language" comparable to the data in this report are given for cities in 42 States and the District of Columbia. For cities in the three Middle Atlantic States (New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania) and five Southwestern States (Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas), the population of Spanish identification in the Volume I reports consists of "Persons of Puerto Rican birth or parentage" and "Persons of Spanish language or surname," respectively. Therefore, for cities in these eight States, the Volume I data for the population of Spanish heritage are not strictly comparable with the data for persons of Spanish language as shown in this report.

• Tables S-1, S-2, and S-3 – summary of selected social, economic, and housing characteristics extracted from the detailed tables
• Table 1 – statistics for the total city and three alternate definitions of the low-income area, consisting of census tracts with poverty rates for persons of 20 percent or more, 30 percent or more, and 40 percent or more, respectively
• Tables 2-7 – data for the total city, the low-income area (census tracts with a poverty rate for persons of 20 percent or more), and the balance of the city
• Table A-1 – count of persons excluded from the basic tables of this report by type of exclusion
• Table A-2 – percent of allocation for nonresponse for selected characteristics included in this report

Appendices

• Appendix A. General Information Concerning the Data
  
• Appendix B. Area Classifications
  
• Appendix C. Definitions and Explanations of Subject Characteristics
  
• Appendix D. Accuracy of the Data
  
• Appendix E. Publication and Computer Summary Tape Program

Sample size. All statistics in this report are based on the 15-percent sample adjusted to represent the total population (see "Data Collection Procedures" in Appendix A).