Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 85.djvu/198

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194
THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY

Table IV

The Geographical Areas in which Unusually High Proportions of Distinguished Persons were born

Geographical Area Total
Distinguished
Persons
Distinguished Persons
Per 100,000
Total
Population
1880
Per 100,000
Native White
Population
1880
United States 10,000 19.9 27.1
New England 2,311 57.6 72.4
Middle Atlantic 2,974 28.4 35.9
East North Central 2,225 19.9 24.4
West North Central 542 8.6 10.9
South Atlantic 1,091 14.2 24.3
East South Central 546 9.8 15.3
West South Central 161 4.9 7.8
Mountain 28 4.3 6.0
Pacific 122 10.9 16.3
 
Vermont 219 65.9 75.5
Massachusetts 1,123 62.9 85.8
New Hampshire 189 54.5 63.1
Connecticut 334 53.6 69.2
Maine 319 49.2 54.3
Rhode Island 127 45.8 64.8
 
New York 1,778 34.9 46.6
Pennsylvania 941 21.9 26.1
 
Ohio 859 26.8 31.5
 
Delaware 41 27.8 37.0
Maryland 218 23.3 33.9
Virginia 266 17.5 30.7

The facts appearing in Table IV. do not in any material way change the apparent status of New England with respect to the other sections of the United States. As regards both the number of eminent persons per 100,000 of total population, and of native-born population, New England appears far in the lead among the other sections of the country. New England's lead is even more marked when the situation is studied in the individual states. The individual states appearing in Table IV. are those which showed a proportion of eminent persons higher than that for the United States at large. Without a single exception, these states are in the northeastern portion of the United States. The list contains every one of the New England States, a portion of the Middle Atlantic and the East North Central States, and no other state. Furthermore, each of the New England States, taken individually, shows a higher proportion of eminent persons than any other single state, or than any other group of states. The supremacy of New England lies, not in any one state, or in any one locality. Vermont leads the list; Rhode Island brings up the rear; yet the proportion of eminent persons born in Rhode Island per 100,000 of total, and of native-white population, is 30 per