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93-671: The museum's galleries include the Diamond M Galleries with American Western artists and a second gallery that focuses on the works of N.C. Wyeth ; the Davies Gallery of Southwest Indian Art that displays Southwest Native American pottery and textiles; the Talkington Gallery of Art with 20th and 21st Century art of the Southwestern United States; a gallery about dinosaurs and other Mesozoic fauna;

186-623: A fauna resembling its position in the dry deserts with temperature extremes. The western continental coast of the U.S., just as the East Coast, varies from a colder-to-warmer climate from north to south. Few species live throughout the entire West Coast, however, there are some, including the bald eagle that inhabits both the Alaskan Aleutian Islands and the California Channel Islands . In most of

279-609: A gallery focused on the southern High Plain's prehistoric Pleistocene megafauna ; and a gallery focused on biodiversity of the Llano Estacado . The museum also includes four galleries that displays temporary exhibitions throughout the year. The Museum of Texas Tech University was established as the West Texas Museum in 1929. It was created by the Plains Museum Society. Original plans called for

372-593: A ground floor that added nearly 4,000 square feet of new gallery space to exhibit the Arnold's art collection and temporary exhibitions of regional and national art, a second floor that provided offices and laboratories for Texas Tech's Heritage and Museum Sciences Graduate Program, and a basement area to house collection storage for the Arnold’s art collection and other fine art at the Museum. The Museum of Texas Tech University

465-448: A ledger. Beginning in 1970 information was gathered via mailed forms. To reduce paper usage, reduce payroll expense and acquire the most comprehensive list of addresses ever compiled, 500,000 handheld computers (HHCs) (specifically designed, single-purpose devices) were used for the first time in 2009 during the address canvassing portion of the 2010 Decennial Census Project. Projected savings were estimated to be over $ 1 billion. The HHC

558-414: A myth of the west which has shaped much of American popular culture since the late 19th century. Writers as diverse as Bret Harte and Zane Grey celebrated or derided cowboy culture, while artists such as Frederic Remington created western art as a method of recording the expansion into the west. The American cinema , in particular, created the genre of the western movie , which, in many cases, use

651-884: A national issue, agencies of the federal government own and manage vast areas of land. (The most important among these are the National Park Service and the Bureau of Land Management within the Interior Department , and the U.S. Forest Service within the Agriculture Department .) National parks are reserved for recreational activities such as fishing , camping , hiking , and boating , but other government lands also allow commercial activities like ranching , logging , and mining . In recent years, some local residents who earn their livelihoods on federal land have come into conflict with

744-511: A northern and southern half called "divisions". In the following decades, several other systems were used, until the current one was introduced in 1910. This system has seen only minor changes: New Mexico and Arizona were both added to the Mountain division upon statehood in 1912, the North region was divided into a Northeast and a North Central region in 1940, Alaska and Hawaii were both added to

837-458: A real-time estimate in U.S. and World Population Clock. Only peoples whose live in the 50 states and within the District of Columbia are included in the estimation. The United States Census Bureau is committed to confidentiality and guarantees non-disclosure of any addresses or personal information related to individuals or establishments. Title 13 of the U.S. Code establishes penalties for

930-578: A sharp decline in citrus production in Arizona. Many varieties of chile peppers are grown in the valleys of New Mexico . Starting in 1902, Congress passed a series of acts authorizing the establishment of the United States Bureau of Reclamation to oversee water development projects in seventeen western states. During the first half of the 20th century, dams and irrigation projects provided water for rapid agricultural growth throughout

1023-421: A three-story building to be constructed. In the summer of 1935, 67 Texas counties agreed to pool their Texas Centennial money for a regional museum and for 35 historical markers. However, this provided only enough funds to construct a basement, which was formally dedicated on March 5, 1937. The museum called the basement home until 1950, when the entire building was finally completed thanks to $ 184,381 allocated to

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1116-464: A total 2020 population of 78,588,572. The West is one of the most sparsely settled areas in the United States with 49.5 inhabitants per square mile (19.1 inhabitants/km ). Only Texas with 78.0 inhabitants/sq mi (30.1 inhabitants/km ), Washington with 86.0 inhabitants/sq mi (33.2 inhabitants/km ), and California with 213.4 inhabitants/sq mi (82.4 inhabitants/km ) exceed

1209-754: A volcano in Washington , is also over 14,000 feet (4,300 m). Mount St. Helens , a volcano in the Cascades , erupted explosively in 1980 . A major volcanic eruption at Mount Mazama around 4860 BC formed Crater Lake . These mountain ranges see heavy precipitation, capturing most of the moisture that remains after the Coast Ranges, and creating a rain shadow to the east forming vast stretches of arid land. These dry areas encompass much of Nevada , Utah , and Arizona . The Mojave Desert and Sonoran Desert along with other deserts are found here. Beyond

1302-496: A zero and uses the term " decennial " to describe the operation. Between censuses, the Census Bureau makes population estimates and projections. In addition, census data directly affects how more than $ 400 billion per year in federal and state funding is allocated to communities for neighborhood improvements, public health , education, transportation and more. The Census Bureau is mandated with fulfilling these obligations:

1395-482: Is at stake, the census also runs the risk of being politicized." Such political tensions highlight the complexity of identity and classification ; some argue that unclear results from the population data "is due to distortions brought about by political pressures." One frequently used example includes ambiguous ethnic counts, which often involves underenumeration and/or undercounting of minority populations. Ideas about race, ethnicity and identity have also evolved in

1488-534: Is conducting the U.S. census every ten years, which allocates the seats of the U.S. House of Representatives to the states based on their population. The bureau's various censuses and surveys help allocate over $ 675 billion in federal funds every year and it assists states, local communities, and businesses make informed decisions. The information provided by the census informs decisions on where to build and maintain schools, hospitals, transportation infrastructure, and police and fire departments. In addition to

1581-540: Is in the Western states. Public lands account for 25 to 75 percent of the total land area in these states. The climate of the West is semi-arid , yet parts of the region get high amounts of rain or snow. Other parts are true desert which receive less than 5 inches (130 mm) of rain per year. The climate is increasingly unstable, and subject to periods of severe drought. The seasonal temperatures vary greatly throughout

1674-409: Is no wonder that the region is difficult to define precisely. Sensing a possible shift in the popular understanding of the West as a region in the early 1990s, historian Walter Nugent conducted a survey of three groups of professionals with ties to the region: a large group of Western historians (187 respondents), and two smaller groups, 25 journalists and publishers and 39 Western authors. A majority of

1767-553: Is pervasive. The territories are not included, but the District of Columbia is. Regional divisions used by the United States Census Bureau: The first census was collected in 1790 and published in 1791. It was 56 pages and cost $ 44,377.28. The current system was introduced for the 1910 census, but other ways of grouping states were used historically by the Census Bureau. The first of these

1860-689: Is predicted to experience drought-like conditions for much of the 21st century. Violent thunderstorms occur east of the Rockies . Tornadoes occur every spring on the southern plains, with the most common and most destructive centered on Tornado Alley , which covers eastern portions of the West, ( Texas to North Dakota ), and all states in between and to the east. Agriculture varies depending on rainfall, irrigation, soil, elevation, and temperature extremes. The arid regions generally support only livestock grazing, chiefly beef cattle. The wheat belt extends from Texas through The Dakotas , producing most of

1953-743: The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), and the National Science Foundation (NSF), among others. Since 1903, the official census-taking agency of the United States government has been the Bureau of the Census. The Census Bureau is headed by a director, assisted by a deputy director and an executive staff composed of

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2046-690: The Bureau of the Census , is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System , responsible for producing data about the American people and economy . The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U.S. Department of Commerce and its director is appointed by the President of the United States . Currently, Robert Santos is the Director of the U.S. Census Bureau and Ron S. Jarmin is the Deputy Director. The Census Bureau's primary mission

2139-577: The Cenozoic era. Salt flats and salt lakes reveal a time when the great inland seas covered much of what is now the West. The Pacific states are the most geologically active areas in the United States. Earthquakes cause damage every few to several years in California . While the Pacific states are the most volcanically active areas, extinct volcanoes and lava flows are found throughout most of

2232-494: The Census Information Center cooperative program that involves 58 "national, regional, and local non-profit organizations". The CIC program aims to represent the interests of underserved communities. The 1890 census was the first to use the electric tabulating machines invented by Herman Hollerith . For 1890–1940 details, see Truesdell, Leon E. (1965). The Development of Punch Card Tabulation in

2325-590: The East . During the latter half of the 20th century, several transcontinental interstate highways crossed the West bringing more trade and tourists from the East. Oil boom towns in Texas and Oklahoma rivaled the old mining camps for their rawness and wealth. The Dust Bowl forced children of the original homesteaders even further west. The movies became America's chief entertainment source featuring western fiction , later

2418-693: The Grand Canyon . The Colorado River is a major source of water in the Southwest and many dams, such as the Hoover Dam , form reservoirs along it. So much water is drawn for drinking water throughout the West and irrigation in California that in most years, water from the Colorado River no longer reaches the Gulf of California . The Columbia River , the largest river in volume flowing into

2511-668: The Gulf of Mexico . The Mississippi River forms the easternmost possible boundary for the West today. The Missouri River , a tributary of the Mississippi , flows from its headwaters in the Rocky Mountains eastward across the Great Plains , a vast grassy plateau, before sloping gradually down to the forests and hence to the Mississippi . The Colorado River snakes through the Mountain states , at one point forming

2604-703: The Las Vegas Valley and Los Angeles . Plains make up much of the eastern portion of the West, underlain with sedimentary rock from the Upper Paleozoic , Mesozoic , and Cenozoic eras. The Rocky Mountains expose igneous and metamorphic rock both from the Precambrian and from the Phanerozoic eon. The Inter-mountain States and Pacific Northwest have huge expanses of volcanic rock from

2697-413: The Mississippi , Ohio , Missouri , Illinois , Tennessee , Cumberland , Arkansas , and White Rivers and their tributaries, and certain other rivers that flow towards the Gulf of Mexico ." The Ohio River portion of the system includes parts of several Atlantic coastal states, from Georgia to New York. Most of the public land held by the U.S. National Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management

2790-529: The Mormon Trail , made its fortunes on outfitting settlers; St. Louis built itself upon the vast fur trade in the West before its settlement. The 1850s were marked by political battles over the expansion of slavery into the western territories, issues leading to the Civil War . Between 1863 and 1869, North America's first transcontinental railroad was constructed to connect the eastern US with

2883-593: The Mountain States include Denver , Colorado Springs , Phoenix , Tucson , Albuquerque , Las Vegas , Reno , Salt Lake City , Boise , El Paso , and Billings . Along the Pacific Ocean coast lie the Coast Ranges , which, while not approaching the scale of the Rocky Mountains , are formidable nevertheless. They collect a large part of the airborne moisture moving in from the ocean. East of

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2976-882: The Northern Mariana Islands ) are sometimes considered part of the Western United States. American Samoa is in Polynesia in the South Pacific Ocean , while Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands are in the Mariana Islands in the western North Pacific Ocean . Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands have district courts within the 9th Circuit , which includes western states such as California and Nevada. (See District Court of Guam and District Court for

3069-830: The Northwest , the highest mountain ranges, including the Rocky Mountains , the Sierra Nevada , and the Cascade Range , numerous glaciers , and the western edge of the Great Plains . It also contains the majority of the desert areas located in the United States. The Mojave and the Great Basin deserts lie entirely within the Western region, along with parts of the Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts (the latter extends significantly into Texas, while both extend into Mexico ). Given this expansive and diverse geography it

3162-634: The Oklahoma panhandle are typically considered to be the Southwest states. Meanwhile, the states of Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington can be considered part of the Northwest or Pacific Northwest . The term West Coast is commonly used to refer to just California, Oregon, Washington, and Alaska, whereas Hawaii is more geographically isolated from the continental U.S. and does not necessarily fit in any of these subregions . The three inhabited Pacific U.S. territories ( American Samoa , Guam and

3255-704: The Pacific Coast , and the mid-Pacific islands state, Hawaii. To the east of the Western United States is the Midwestern United States and the Southern United States , with Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. The West contains several major biomes , including arid and semi-arid plateaus and plains , particularly in the American Southwest ; forested mountains , including three major ranges,

3348-648: The Pacific Ocean from North America , and its tributary, the Snake River , water the Pacific Northwest. The Platte runs through Nebraska and was known for being a mile (2 km) wide but only a half-inch (1 cm) deep. The Rio Grande forms the border between Texas and Mexico before turning due north and splitting New Mexico in half. According to the United States Coast Guard , "The Western Rivers System consists of

3441-536: The Pacific coast . The resulting railroad connection revolutionized the settlement and economy of the American West by making the transportation of passengers and freight quicker, safer, and cheaper. The history of the American West in the late 19th and early 20th centuries has acquired a cultural mythos in the literature and cinema of the United States. The image of the cowboy , the homesteader , and westward expansion took real events and transmuted them into

3534-619: The Sierra Nevada , the Cascades , and Rocky Mountains; the long coastal shoreline of the American Pacific Coast ; and the rainforests of the Pacific Northwest . The Western United States is the largest region of the country, covering nearly half the land area of the contiguous United States . It is also the most geographically diverse, incorporating geographic regions such as the temperate rainforests of

3627-646: The Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (TIGER) database system. Census officials were able to evaluate the more sophisticated and detailed results that the TIGER system produced; furthermore, TIGER data is also available to the public. And while the TIGER system does not directly amass demographic data, as a geographic information system (GIS), it can be used to merge demographics to conduct more accurate geospatial and mapping analysis. In July 2019,

3720-554: The Virginia opossum , which occurs throughout California and coastal areas in Oregon and Washington. The North American beaver and mountain beaver live in forested areas of Washington, Oregon and Northern California. The kit fox lives throughout Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, while the gray fox occurs throughout the Western U.S. The Western United States has been populated by Native Americans since at least 11,000 years ago, when

3813-428: The Bureau of the Census, 1890–1940: With outlines of actual tabulation programs . U.S. GPO . In 1946, knowing of the bureau's funding of Hollerith and, later, Powers , John Mauchly approached the bureau about early funding for UNIVAC development. A UNIVAC I computer was accepted by the bureau in 1951. Historically, the census information was gathered by census takers going door-to-door collecting information in

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3906-559: The Census Bureau released individual information regarding several hundred young men to the Justice Department and Selective Service system for the purpose of prosecutions for draft evasion. During World War II , the United States Census Bureau assisted the government's Japanese American internment efforts by providing confidential neighborhood information on Japanese-Americans . The bureau's role

3999-458: The Census Bureau stopped releasing new data via American FactFinder, which was decommissioned in March 2020 after 20 years of being the agency's primary tool for data dissemination. The new platform is data.census.gov. Throughout the decade between censuses, the bureau conducts surveys to produce a general view and comprehensive study of the United States' social and economic conditions. Staff from

4092-559: The Coast Ranges lie several cultivated fertile valleys , notably the San Joaquin and Sacramento valleys of California and the Willamette Valley of Oregon . Beyond the valleys lie the Sierra Nevada in the south and the Cascade Range in the north. Mount Whitney , at 14,505 feet (4,421 m) the tallest peak in the contiguous 48 states, is in the Sierra Nevada . The Cascades are also volcanic. Mount Rainier ,

4185-453: The Curatorial Facility Certification Program. The museum is the first to have no deficiencies and no disabling factors during its evaluation prior to certification. American West The Western United States (also called the American West , the Western States , the Far West , the Western territories , and the West ) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau . As American settlement in

4278-448: The Current Surveys Program conduct over 130 ongoing and special surveys about people and their characteristics. A network of professional field representatives gathers information from a sample of households, responding to questions about employment, consumer expenditures, health, housing, and other topics. Surveys conducted between decades: The Census Bureau also collects information on behalf of survey sponsors. These sponsors include

4371-452: The HHC. Since the units were updated nightly with important changes and updates, operator implementation of proper procedure was imperative. Census Bureau stays current by conducting research studies to improve the work that they do. Census researchers explore topics about survey innovations, participation, and data accuracy, such as undercount, overcount, the use of technologies, multilingual research, and ways to reduce costs. In addition,

4464-402: The Nation's people and economy." Only after 72 years does the information collected become available to other agencies or the general public. Seventy-two years was picked because usually by 72 years since the census is taken, most participants would be deceased. Despite these guarantees of confidentiality, the Census Bureau has some history of disclosures to other government agencies. In 1918,

4557-427: The Northern Mariana Islands ). American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands are also considered part of the western U.S. by the U.S. National Park Service , the Federal Reserve Bank system, FEMA , and the USGS . The population distribution by race in the Western United States (2022): As defined by the United States Census Bureau , the Western region of the United States includes 13 states, with

4650-516: The Pacific Coast where it increases again. In fact, the greatest annual rainfall in the United States falls in the coastal regions of the Pacific Northwest . Drought is much more common in the West than the rest of the United States. The driest place recorded in the U.S. is Death Valley , California. In Western states, drought is closely associated with fire risk, and there have been a number of notable wildfires causing extensive property damage and wildlife habitat destruction . The Western United States

4743-419: The Pacific division upon statehood in 1959, and the North Central region was renamed the Midwest in 1984. Many federal, state, local and tribal governments use census data to: Census data is used to determine how seats of Congress are distributed to states. Census data is not used to determine or define race genetically, biologically or anthropologically. The census data is also used by the Bureau to obtain

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4836-402: The Rockies , 54 of which are over 14,000 feet (4,300 m), are found in central and western Colorado . East of the Rocky Mountains is the Great Plains, the western portions (for example, the eastern half of Colorado) of which are generally considered to be part of the western United States. The West has several long rivers that empty into the Pacific Ocean , while the eastern rivers run into

4929-407: The U.S. expanded westward , the meaning of the term the West changed. Before around 1800, the crest of the Appalachian Mountains was seen as the western frontier . The frontier moved westward and eventually the lands west of the Mississippi River were considered the West . The U.S. Census Bureau's definition of the 13 westernmost states includes the Rocky Mountains and the Great Basin to

5022-446: The U.S. Code. By law, the Census Bureau must count everyone and submit state population totals to the U.S. president by December 31 of any year ending in a zero. States within the Union receive the results in the spring of the following year. The United States Census Bureau defines four statistical regions, with nine divisions. The Census Bureau regions are "widely used...for data collection and analysis". The Census Bureau definition

5115-420: The United States or foreign governments, or law enforcement agencies such as the IRS or the FBI or Interpol . "Providing quality data, for public good—while respecting individual privacy and, at the same time, protecting confidentiality—is the Census Bureau's core responsibility"; "Keeping the public's trust is critical to the Census's ability to carry out the mission as the leading source of quality data about

5208-409: The United States, and such changes warrant examination of how these shifts have impacted the accuracy of census data over time. The United States Census Bureau began pursuing technological innovations to improve the precision of its census data collection in the 1980s. Robert W. Marx, the Chief of the Geography Division of the USCB teamed up with the U.S. Geological Survey and oversaw the creation of

5301-429: The West and California , whites and blacks together are less than half the population because of the preference for the region by Hispanics and Asians . African and European Americans, however, continue to wield a stronger political influence because of the lower rates of citizenship and voting among Asians and Hispanics . According to 2022 estimates from the Census Bureau, the largest ancestries reported in

5394-440: The West and brought prosperity for several states, where agriculture had previously only been subsistence level. Following World War II , the West's cities experienced an economic and population boom. The population growth, mostly in the Southwest states of New Mexico , Utah , Colorado , Arizona , and Nevada , has strained water and power resources, with water diverted from agricultural uses to major population centers, such as

5487-517: The West are Mexican (24.2%), German (10.1%), English (9.5%), Irish (7.2%), Italian (3.5%), Filipino (3.4%), and Chinese (3.3%). The West also contains much of the Native American population in the U.S., particularly in the large reservations in the Mountain and Desert States . As of 2022, the West is home to 365,351 Navajo , 109,208 Apache , and 78,364 Blackfeet , as well as 276,082 people identifying as Indigenous Mexican . The largest concentrations for African-Americans in

5580-453: The West as a metaphor for the virtue of self-reliance and an American ethos. The contrast between the romanticism of culture about the West and the actuality of the history of the westward expansion has been a theme of late 20th and early 21st century scholarship about the West. Cowboy culture has become embedded in the American experience as a common cultural touchstone, and modern forms as diverse as country and western music have celebrated

5673-409: The West can be found in San Diego , Los Angeles , Oakland , Sacramento , Fresno , San Francisco , Seattle , Tacoma , Phoenix , Las Vegas , Denver , and Colorado Springs . The Western United States has a higher sex ratio (more males than females ) than any other region in the United States. Because the tide of development had not yet reached most of the West when conservation became

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5766-662: The West. The ecoregions and ecology found in the Western United States are extremely varied. For instance, large areas of land are made up of everything from sand dunes in the Central Basin and Range ecoregion , which makes up much of the State of Nevada , to the ecology of the North Cascades in Washington state , which has the largest concentration of active alpine glaciers in the lower 48 . The densely forested areas found in Northern California , Oregon , Washington, Idaho , and Montana have mostly species adapted to living in temperate climates , while Southern California , Nevada , Arizona , southern Utah , and New Mexico have

5859-444: The West. Low elevations on the West Coast have warm summers and mild winters with little to no snow. The desert southwest has very hot summers and mild winters. While the mountains in the southwest receive generally large amounts of snow. The Inland Northwest has a continental climate of warm to hot summers and cold to bitterly cold winters. Annual rainfall is greater in the eastern portions, gradually tapering off until reaching

5952-452: The associate directors. The Census Bureau headquarters has been in Suitland, Maryland , since 1942. A new headquarters complex completed there in 2007 supports over 4,000 employees. > The bureau operates regional offices in 6 cities: > New York City , Philadelphia , Chicago , Atlanta , Denver , and Los Angeles . The National Processing Center is in Jeffersonville, Indiana . Additional temporary processing facilities facilitate

6045-452: The census was taken by marshals of the judicial districts . The Census Act of 1840 established a central office which became known as the Census Office. Several acts followed that revised and authorized new censuses, typically at the 10-year intervals. In 1902, the temporary Census Office was moved under the Department of Interior , and in 1903 it was renamed the Census Bureau under the new Department of Commerce and Labor . The department

6138-672: The collecting of statistics about the nation, its people, and economy. The Census Bureau's legal authority is codified in Title 13 of the United States Code . The Census Bureau also conducts surveys on behalf of various federal government and local government agencies on topics such as employment, crime, health, consumer expenditures , and housing. Within the bureau, these are known as "demographic surveys" and are conducted perpetually between and during decennial (10-year) population counts. The Census Bureau also conducts economic surveys of manufacturing, retail, service, and other establishments and of domestic governments. Between 1790 and 1840,

6231-450: The community of Hollywood in Los Angeles became the headquarters of the mass media such as radio and television production. California has emerged as the most populous state and one of the top 10 economies in the world. Massive late 19th–20th century population and settlement booms created two megalopolis areas of the Greater Los Angeles / Southern California and the San Francisco Bay Area / Northern California regions, one of

6324-478: The construction of an educational space addition to the Nash Interpretive Center at the Landmark (2007). While the physical plant was growing, the museum continued to add objects and specimens. As of 2023, its collections contain nearly 9.5 million objects and specimens. In June 2023, the Museum of Texas Tech University expanded with the opening of the 18,000 ft Dr. Robert Neff and Louise Willson Arnold Wing. The construction expansion project consisted of three floors:

6417-478: The contiguous Western U.S. are mule deer , white-tailed antelope squirrels , cougars , American badgers , coyotes , hawks and several species of snakes and lizards are common. While the American black bear lives throughout the U.S., the brown bears and grizzly bears are more common in the northwest and in Alaska. Along the West Coast there are several species of whales, sea otters , California sea lions , eared seals and northern elephant seals . In

6510-416: The decennial census, the Census Bureau continually conducts over 130 surveys and programs a year, including the American Community Survey , the U.S. Economic Census , and the Current Population Survey . The U.S. Economic Census occurs every five years and reports on American Business and the American economy in order to plan business decisions. Furthermore, economic and foreign trade indicators released by

6603-500: The decennial census, which employs more than a million people. The cost of the 2000 census was $ 4.5 billion. During the years just prior to the decennial census, parallel census offices, known as "Regional Census Centers" are opened in the field office cities. The decennial operations are carried out from these facilities. The Regional Census Centers oversee the openings and closings of smaller "Area Census Offices" within their collection jurisdictions. In 2020, Regional Census Centers oversaw

6696-564: The deserts lie the Rocky Mountains . In the north, they run almost immediately east of the Cascade Range , so that the desert region is only a few miles wide by the time one reaches the Canada–US border. The Rockies are hundreds of miles wide and run uninterrupted from New Mexico to Alaska . The Rocky Mountain Region is the highest overall area of the United States, with an average elevation of above 4,000 feet (1,200 m). The tallest peaks of

6789-529: The disclosure of this information. All census employees must sign an affidavit of non-disclosure prior to employment. This non-disclosure states "I will not disclose any information contained in the schedules, lists, or statements obtained for or prepared by the Census Bureau to any person or persons either during or after employment." The punishment for breaking the non-disclosure is a fine up to $ 250,000 or 5 years in prison. The bureau cannot share responses, addresses or personal information with anyone, including

6882-569: The dry, inland desert areas of states such as California, Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico there are some of the world's most venomous lizards, snakes and scorpions. The most notorious might be the Gila monster and Mohave rattlesnake , both found in deserts in the Southwest . The Sonoran Desert has eleven species of rattlesnakes - more than anywhere else in the world. Along the southwestern border there are jaguars and ocelots . Other mammals include

6975-658: The federal government typically contain data produced by the Census Bureau. Article One of the United States Constitution (section II) directs the population be enumerated at least once every ten years and the resulting counts used to set the number of members from each state in the House of Representatives and, by extension, in the Electoral College . The Census Bureau now conducts a full population count every ten years in years ending with

7068-607: The first Paleo-Indians arrived. Pre-Columbian trade routes to kingdoms and empires such as the Mound Builders existed in places such as Yellowstone National Park since around 1000 AD. Major settlement of the western territories developed rapidly in the 1840s, largely through the Oregon Trail and the California Gold Rush of 1849. California experienced such a rapid growth in a few short months that it

7161-546: The historian respondents placed the eastern boundary of the West east of the Census definition out on the eastern edge of the Great Plains or on the Mississippi River . The survey respondents as a whole showed just how little agreement there was on the boundaries of the West. The region is split into two smaller units or divisions, by the U.S. Census Bureau: Other classifications distinguish between Southwest and Northwest . Arizona, New Mexico, West Texas , and

7254-491: The land's managers, who are required to keep land use within environmentally acceptable limits. The largest city in the region is Los Angeles , located on the West Coast . Other West Coast cities include San Diego , San Bernardino , San Jose , San Francisco , Oakland , Bakersfield , Fresno , Sacramento , Seattle , Tacoma , Anchorage , and Portland – some of which are dozens of miles inland. Prominent cities in

7347-667: The nation's largest metropolitan areas and in the top 25 largest urban areas in the world. Five more metropolitan areas of San Bernardino - Riverside , San Diego , Denver , Phoenix , and Seattle have over a million residents, while the three fastest growing metro areas were the Salt Lake City metropolitan area , the Las Vegas metropolitan area ; and the Portland metropolitan area . United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau ( USCB ), officially

7440-638: The national average of 77.98 inhabitants/sq mi (30.11 inhabitants/km ). As of 2022, just under half of the 78.7 million residents of the West live in California . The entire Western region has also been strongly influenced by European , Hispanic or Latino , Asian and Native Americans ; it contains the largest number of minorities in the U.S. While most of the studies of racial dynamics in America such as riots in Los Angeles have been written about European and African-Americans , in many cities in

7533-638: The operation of 248 Area Census Offices, The estimated cost of the 2010 census is $ 14.7 billion. On January 1, 2013, the Census Bureau consolidated its twelve regional offices into six. Increasing costs of data collection, changes in survey management tools such as laptops and the increasing use of multi-modal surveys (i.e. internet, telephone, and in-person) led the Bureau to consolidate. The six regional offices that closed were Boston, Charlotte, Dallas, Detroit, Kansas City and Seattle. The remaining regional offices are New York City, Philadelphia, Chicago, Atlanta, Denver, and Los Angeles. The Census Bureau also runs

7626-445: The populace's private information. Enumerators (information gatherers) that had operational problems with the device understandably made negative reports. During the 2009 Senate confirmation hearings for Robert Groves , President Obama's Census Director appointee, there was much mention of problems but very little criticism of the units. In rural areas, the sparsity of cell phone towers caused problems with data transmission to and from

7719-616: The project from the veterans' program surplus in 1948. The museum's first director was Dr. William Curry Holden . He remained in the position until his retirement in 1969. Holden identified the first Folsom projectile points from the Lubbock Lake area at the location now known as the Lubbock Lake Landmark . For a time, the site was operated in conjunction with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department . In 1999, it

7812-503: The sense of isolation and independence of spirit inspired by the frontiersmen on "virgin land". The advent of the automobile enabled the average American to tour the West. Western businessmen promoted Route 66 as a means to bring tourism and industry to the West. In the 1950s, representatives from all the western states built the Cowboy Hall of Fame and Western Heritage Center to showcase western culture and greet travelers from

7905-534: The wheat and soybeans in the U.S. and exporting more to the rest of the world. Irrigation in the Southwest allows the growth of great quantities of fruits, nuts, and vegetables as well as grain, hay, and flowers. Texas is a major cattle and sheep raising area, as well as the nation's largest producer of cotton. Washington is famous for its apples, and Idaho for its potatoes. California and Arizona are major producers of citrus crops, however, declining supplies of water, as well as urban sprawl have contributed to

7998-670: Was added. Additions to the museum since 1970 include the establishment of the National Ranching Heritage Center (1976), the construction of facilities at the Lubbock Lake Landmark (1990), the building of the Diamond M Wing to house the Diamond M Fine Art Collection (1995), the addition of the Helen Jones Auditorium and Sculpture Court Wing (2001), the building of the 18,000 square feet (1,700 m) NSRL Addition (2004), and

8091-726: Was admitted to statehood in 1850 without the normal transitory phase of becoming an official territory. One of the largest migrations in American history occurred in the 1840s as the Latter Day Saints left the Midwest to build a theocracy in Utah . Both Omaha, Nebraska and St. Louis, Missouri laid claim to the title, "Gateway to the West" during this period. Omaha , home to the Union Pacific Railroad and

8184-552: Was denied for decades but was finally proven in 2007. United States census data are valuable for the country's political parties; Democrats and Republicans are highly interested in knowing the accurate number of persons in their respective districts. These insights are often linked to financial and economic strategies that are central to federal, state and city investments for locations of particular populations. Such apportionments are designed to distribute political power across neutral spatial allocations; however, "because so much

8277-570: Was first accredited by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) in 1990. In 1998, it received continuing accreditation. AAM accreditation was renewed again in 2008 and 2020 and is effective for ten years. Only 774 of the nation's 17,000 museums are AAM accredited and, of those, only 108 are university or college facilities. In May 2008, the Texas Historical Commission gave the museum exemplary certification through

8370-500: Was fully transferred to Texas Tech under the supervision and care of the Museum of Texas Tech University. In 1969, the museum assumed its present name. The following year, it moved into a new $ 2.5 million facility on a seventy-six-acre tract, and its former building, Holden Hall, was converted into classrooms and office space. Shortly after this expansion, the Natural Science Research Laboratory (NSRL)

8463-511: Was intended to consolidate overlapping statistical agencies, but Census Bureau officials were hindered by their subordinate role in the department. An act in 1920 changed the date and authorized manufacturing censuses every two years and agriculture censuses every 10 years. In 1929, a bill was passed mandating the House of Representatives be reapportioned based on the results of the 1930 census . In 1954, various acts were codified into Title 13 of

8556-721: Was introduced after the 1850 census by statistician and later census superintendent J. D. B. De Bow . He published a compendium where the states and territories were grouped into five "great division", namely the Middle, New England, the Northwestern, the Southern, and the Southwestern great divisions. Unsatisfied with this system, De Bow devised another one four years later, with states and territories grouped into an Eastern, Interior, and Western "great section", each divided into

8649-414: Was manufactured by Harris Corporation , an established Department of Defense contractor, via a controversial contract with the Department of Commerce . Secured access via a fingerprint swipe guaranteed only the verified user could access the unit. A GPS capacity was integral to the daily address management and the transfer of gathered information. Of major importance was the security and integrity of

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