4 things to know about Springfield's population loss

The U.S. Census Bureau has released its latest estimates of populations throughout the country and Springfield’s population of 59,680 makes it the 616th largest city in the U.S.

Here are four things we learned from the latest census estimates:

1. Other Midwestern cities of about the same size are seeing population declines similar to Springfield’s. We’re losing people at about the same rate as Battle Creek, Mich., and Canton, Ohio.


City	2010 population	July 1, 2015 population estimate	Population change 2010-15	% population change 2010-15
Elyria, Ohio	54,533	53,775	-758	-1.4
Racine, Wisc.	78,860	77,742	-1,118	-1.4
Meriden, Conn.	60,868	59,988	-880	-1.4
Battle Creek, Mich.	52,346	51,589	-757	-1.4
Springfield, Ohio	60,608	59,680	-928	-1.5
Canton, Ohio	73,017	71,885	-1,132	-1.6
Anderson, Ind.	56,176	55,305	-871	-1.6

2. Clark County has lost population, but much more slowly than some other parts of Ohio.

Fastest shrinking Ohio counties
Rank (88 is fastest decline)	County	2010	2015	% change 2010-15
88	Carroll	28,836	27,811	-3.6%
87	Jefferson	69709	67,347	-3.4%
86	Crawford	43,784	42,306	-3.4%
85	Scioto	79,499	76,825	-3.4%
84	Paulding	19,614	18,976	-3.3%
77	Champaign	40,097	38,987	-2.8%
54	Clark	138,333	135,959

-1.7%

Fastest growing Ohio counties
Rank	County	2010	2015	% change 2010-15
1	Delaware	174,189	193,013	10.8%
2	Franklin	1,163,545	1,251,722	7.6%
3	Warren	212,868	224,469	5.4%
4	Union	52,267	54,277	3.8%
5	Holmes	42,366	43,909	3.6%

3. Detroit has seen the greatest population loss of large cities in the U.S. since 2010 — a more than 5 percent decline — but its losses have slowed in recent years.

No Ohio cities were among the 10 worst for population decline from 2014 to 2015. Springfield’s population declined by 0.4 percent over that one-year time period. Estimates are calculated for July 1 of each year.

Cities with largest estimated population declines from 2014 to 2015
City	2014 population estimate	2015 population estimate	Population change 2014-15	% change 2014-15
Rocky Mount, N.C.	56,279	55,806	-473	-0.8
Wichita Falls, Texas	105,677	104,710	-967	-0.9
Hampton, Va.	137,813	136,454	-1,359	-1.0
Gary, Ind.	77,960	77,156	-804	-1.0
Hammond, Ind.	78,434	77,614	-820	-1.0
Decatur, Ill.	74,071	73,254	-817	-1.1
Charleston, W.V.	50,326	49,736	-590	-1.2
Albany, Ga.	75,863	74,843	-1,020	-1.3
Marietta, Ga.	60,058	59,067	-991	-1.7
Valdosta, Ga.	56,665	55,724	-941	-1.7

4. Our Springfield has the worst population trend of the Springfields in the U.S.

Springfield’s with more than 50,000 population
City	2010 population	2015 population estimate	Population change 2010-15	% change 2010-15
Springfield, Mo.	159,441	166,810	7,369	4.6
Springfield, Ore.	59,382	60,870	1,488	2.5
Springfield, Mass.	153,195	154,341	1,146	0.7
Springfield, Ill.	116,418	116,565	147	0.1
Springfield, Ohio	60,608	59,680	-928	-1.5

How many people live in your city? Search the U.S. Census estimates from 2010 to 2015 for cities, villages and townships.

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About the Author

Katie Wedell