Washington's Shifting Demographics
State health officials report a slow decline in birth rates, while noting divergent trends across different racial communities.
A gradual decline of the birthrate in the state of Washington has occurred during the last four years, according to Dr. Paul A. Turner, Director of the State Department of Health. In 1921 there were 2,032.0 births per 100,000 population; in 1922, 1,864.2; in 1923, 1,797.9; and in 1924, 1,780.8. The reduction in the birth rate does not apparently apply to all human races in the state as statistics for the last four years indicate that fewer children are now born from white and Japanese parentage while the birth rates of Negroes, Indians, Chinese and others are steadily increasing. Yakima has the highest birth rate among the cities of the first class in the state (30.8 per 1,000 population). The fact that the number of births for 1924 (25,634) is still far ahead of the number of deaths speaks well for the prosperity and general health conditions of Washington, but this excess of births over deaths is diminishing quite rapidly.
“The reduction in the birth rate does not apparently apply to all human races in the state.”
This 1925 report reflects the era's obsession with eugenics and demographic anxiety, using health department data to categorize and track populations. It is a striking artifact of the state's official public health rhetoric during a time of intense racial exclusion.
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