Migration in the United States

Migration in the United States

Population Movement within the U.S.

Shelter, food, favorable weather, and safety are a few of the reasons why man has been on the move since the beginning of time. Because of these unavoidable facts people have moved from location to location in search of a better life and this trend has continued to occur to this day. In today's age we still move in search for a better life but for such reasons as - economical gain, family, overpopulation in urban areas, war at home, and unfortunately as we have recently witnessed for uncontrollable natural disasters. Although movement of people occurs in all corners of the world I will focus on population movement within the United States primarily. Some of the facts that I hope to uncover are the causes of why people move, which age groups are moving most often, what types of people (race, ethnicity, income and educational level) are migrating most regularly, and the impacts of population movement in some areas. Though we are reminded daily how connected to the world we are through new technologies such as world wide phones, transcontinental airlines, and the internet it is an undeniable fact that we are still a people on the move.

In the year 2000 two thirds of the population in the United States lived in the states lining our three major coasts. Nearly 40% along the Atlantic Coast, 16% living in the states located on the Pacific Coast, and 12% living along the Gulf of Mexico (Klepp, 2004). Possible reasons for this phenomenon are the Atlantic Coast is where the English colonist originally settled in America, coastal states are aesthetically the most pleasing areas, or maybe because the climate is generally milder in the coastal states. What is it about these locations that make them so desirable that nearly 70% of the population in the United States lives there? Whatever the reason may be it has taken years and generations of families to make this statistic a reality. Ironically, due to our current location, the smallest percentage of people in the U.S. lives in the area between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains. Could this be because our ancestors and previous family members preferred areas providing more isolation or can our lack of population be blamed on struggling economical potential in this area? These facts will help us determine the current trend in population movement within the United States today.

To understand population movement we must start from our nations beginning. America is a country whose population is made up of immigrants. Most Americans are immigrants or descendants of the many different types of people that have settled here over the past 300 years. Unfortunately today there are only a small percentage of direct descendants related to the Native Americans that were here before the European settlers arrived. Native Americans relied on there ability to move quickly in search of food or for a warm place to survive the winter. For them migration was necessary for survival.

In the late 16 and 1700's the early settlers from Europe came to North America for a chance to start a new life and disband from England's control. Unlike the Native Americans the early settlers did not move for survival but for a chance to live a better life. The colonists were so dedicated to this move that it eventually led them to war for their independence. Throughout the nineteenth century American settlers were still not ready to settle down and with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 thus began the western expansion of the United States. During the 20th century new territories such as Alaska, Hawaii, and the Island of Puerto Rico brought on new opportunity for further expansion and migration continued well into the twenty first century.

Today's generation according to the 2000 census is composed of people still in search of a place to settle down. The average person living within the United States will move between 11 and 13 times making us a very mobile society. Unlike our ancestors of the past we are moving for reasons other than food supplies and favorable climates. What is it that we are looking for though, what forces are causing us to pick up and start a new home? There are four main areas as to why people are moving today according to the U.S. Census Bureau those being family related reasons, employment related reasons, housing related reasons, and other reasons also known as push and pull factors (Human Population 2005).

In a survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau the majority of people moving within the United States are people moving for housing related reasons (Schachter, Why People Move, 2001: pg. 2). Ownership compared to renting, upgrading current housing situations, better neighborhoods and communities, and cheaper housing are all reasons as to why this is the greatest moving factor. Of the 50,000 people surveyed that had made a move nearly 52% had used scenarios such as these for their reason of moving. Housing related moves are found to be made by all categories of people from the poor to the wealthy, and the uneducated to the highly educated. In addition the majority of people that based their move for housing reasons kept their move within the same county they were currently living in. Personally I fall into this category by purchasing my first home this past summer.

Economic gain is another reason people list as why they move. Economically, the United States is the richest nation in the world. By many America is seen as the land of opportunity which in turn leads to more and better jobs equaling more money to be made. Everyone that moves does it for their own reasons but a large number of moves are made for economic growth. Some situations that spur moves based on economic reasons are a new job or a transfer, lost job, searching for work, or for commuting purposes. The majority of economic based moves according to Schachter are made by the highly educated. Schachter goes on to explain how education is directly tied to employment to prove that the educated are the more likely to move for economic reasons than the poor or uneducated. Another Interesting aspect of economic moves is that they tend to be longer in distance. Schachter goes on to say that those individuals making cross country moves for economical reasons are more commonly the highly educated or wealthy because they can afford these long distance opportunities. There is no doubt that many