Finding Statistics

 

General Compilations

  • Datapedia of the United States: 1790-2000 [HA202 .K87 1994 Ref] – Offers broad overview of statistics, combining the Historical Statistics of the United States with contemporary data from Statistical Abstract.
  • Data and Statistics About the U.S. – On this website you can find data about the U.S., such as demographic and economic data.
  • Historical Statistics of Black America [E185 .H543 1995 Ref, 2 volumes] – Covers data from the 18th century to 1975 on a range of subjects, from agriculture to vital statistics. Compiled from federal government sources as well as from African-American institutions.
  • Historical Statistics of the United States: Colonial Times to 1970 [HA202 .B87 1975 Ref, 2 volumes] – Overview of federal government statistics, to be used as a predecessor of Statistical Abstract.
  • Statistical Abstract of the United States [HA202 .U5 1964, 71, 76-present Ref] – The first place to look for statistics; published annually by Census Bureau with over 1500 tables of statistics gathered from all agencies and other organizations. Sources are usually listed, so you will be able to locate additional information if necessary. This site provides editions of the Statistical Abstracts series back to 1878. Older editions are available as .ZIP files.
  • Statistical Sources [HA36 .S84 1998 Ref] – Two-volume index to major statistical sources. It will give you a brief record for the document that covers that particular subject, listing mainly federal publications, but some monographs as well.

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Agriculture

  • Agricultural Statistics – Published annually, this title seeks to “meet the diverse need for a reliable reference book on agricultural production, supplies, consumption, facilities, costs, and returns.” Most of the data in Agricultural Statistics comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
  • Census of Agriculture – Data is available on the state and county level and by geographic and subject areas. Links to older Census of Agriculture data are found at the top of this page.
  • Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly Food Stamp Program) – Statistics on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
  • National Agricultural Statistics Service – Agricultural production and marketing data. The Census of Agriculture is conducted by NASS every five years to collect information on the number of farms, land use, production expenses, etc.
  • USDA Economics, Statistics, and Market Economic System – The USDA Economics, Statistics and Market Information System contains over 2,100 publications from five agencies of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The materials cover U.S. and international agriculture and related topics.

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Business/Companies

  • 100 Best to Work For – Ranks the top-rated 100 U.S. compaines and provides various statistical data on each company and its employees.
  • Fortune 500 – Ranks the top 500 companies and provides statistical information on each company and its employees.
  • For other databases, relevant web sites, and print publications in Roberts – LaForge Library, click here.

Economy

  • Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) – Statistics include the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), national wealth, the input-output accounts, personal income and related economics, and the U.S. balance of payments accounts and associated foreign investment accounts.
  • Consumer Price Indexes (CPI) – “Price indexes are available for the U.S., the four Census regions, size of city, cross-classifications of regions and size-classes, and for 26 local areas.” Use this site “as an economic indicator” as well “as a means for adjusting income payments.”
  • County Business Patterns – View economic profiles by county, state, or nation. Lists the NAICS codes associated with each industry. For a listing and explanation of NAICS codes, click here.
  • Economic Census – Statistics on all U.S. industries.
  • Economic Indicators – Shows trends on topics such as the GDP, personal income, national income, employment, and wages.
  • Economic Report of the President – Combined with the annual report of the Council of Economic Advisers, the Economic Report acts as a companion to the Budget of the U.S. Government and “overviews the nation’s economic progress using text and extensive data appendices.” Under “Previous Economic Reports,” you can download either the entire report or the statistical tables only. Full reports go back to ’95.
  • Economic Briefing Room – Similar to Economic Indicators, the EBR collects its data from several federal agencies and puts it into a chart format.
  • Federal Reserve Board’s Statistics:Releases and Historical Data – Provides daily and historical foreign exchange rates. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York offers a similar service. Another (easier to navigate) site offering current foreign exchange rates is XE.Com.
  • FRASER – Access to economic and banking data from hundreds of publications.
  • Survey of Current Business – BEA’s monthly journal.
  • Producer Price Indexes (PPI) – “Measures the average change over time in selling prices received by domestic producers of goods and services. PPIs measure price change from the perspective of the seller.” PPI also “measure of price movement for particular industries and products.”
  • For stock market information, visit their individual Web sites such as www.nyse.com or www.nasdaq.com. Or visit pages such as www.kiplinger.com or www.cnn.com for general statistics and overviews of the finance world.

Trade

  • Foreign Trade Statistics – This page includes country data, state export data, historical series, and more.
  • TradeStats Express – Sophisticated database that examines U.S. and state trade by product or by trading partner.

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Census

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Crime

  • Bureau of Prisons – Locate information on prison personnel, crimes, and prisoner demographics.
  • Capital Punishment Statistics – Lists executions back to 1930. Farther down in this page, BJS bulletins from 1993-2000 list characteristics of those sentenced to die and those executed.
  • College and University Campus Crime Statistics – Locate recent national campus crime statistics.
  • Crime and Victim Statistics – Find demographics on victims and offenders, geography, and the crime event. Links are also available for other victim and crime-related statistics.
  • Drug and Crime Facts – Find statistics on drug-related crimes. A helpful bibliography is also included for further study.
  • Indicators of School Crime and Safety – Find data on type of crime, age, and methods of discipline. Older editions are available from nces.ed.gov.
  • Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics – Search the online version of this popular comprehensive source. The Sourcebook is divided into six major sections: Characteristics of the criminal justice systems, Public attitudes toward crime and criminal justice-related topics, Nature and distribution of known offenses, Characteristics and distribution of persons arrested, Judicial processing of defendants, and Persons under correctional supervision. Most statistics are on the state and national level.
  • Crime in the United States – On this webpage of the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program, you can find information and data about crime in the U.S. and other criminal justice topics.

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Education

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Government/Politics

  • Campaign Finance Reports and Data – “View actual financial disclosure reports filed by House, Senate and Presidential campaigns, Parties and PACs from 1993 to the present.” Highlights information from the 2000 presidential election.
  • Dave Leip’s Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections – Contains the general election results dating back to 1789.
  • Electoral College – Maintained by the National Archives and Records Administration, this site provides an explanation of the “college,” as well as electoral college results for all presidential elections dating back to 1789.
  • Federal Budget – Includes the complete budget presented to Congress by the President, other budget proposals, and related documentation. The current issue is available along with previous issues dating back to 1997.
  • Gallup Polls – Provides most recent public opinion polls.

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Health

United States

  • Atlas of United States Mortality – shows 18 leading causes of death by race and sex from 1988-1992.
  • CDC Wonder – Find a plethora of stats and other information on topics such as chronic diseases, health practice and prevention, communicable diseases, injury prevention, environmental health, and occupational health. A reference section provides valuable vital and demographic data.
  • Death Rates – shows death rates by either age group or by cause.
  • Health, United States – An annual report on national trends in vital statistics, health status, and health care.
  • National Center for Health Statistics – massive site for health statistics with the most popular listed in the “Top Ten Links.” Click on FASTATS to search for statistics by topic. For more extensive statistical tables and “micro-data”, please visit the Data and Statistics Page.
  • Surgeon General Reports – Search official Surgeon General reports dating back to 1964.
  • Vital and Health Statistics Series – Online version of the twenty four series of vital and health statistics published by the National Center for Health Statistics.

International

  • International Statistics Program – On this website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), you can find information about the CDC International Statistics Program, such as collaborations and cooperation with international organizations.
  • World Health Statistics – On this web page of the World Health Organization (WHO), you can access reports containing health statistics for places around the world.

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Immigration

  • Immigration Statistics – Find statistics on immigrants, refugees, temporary admissions, naturalizations, and enforcement in the Yearbook of Immigration Statistics. For the most up-to-date stats, use the monthly statistical reports found under the “Publications” link.

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Justice

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Labor

Careers and Occupations

  • Earnings by Occupation and Education – Information on earnings in several categories.
  • National Compensation Survey (NCS) – “provides comprehensive measures of occupational earnings; compensation cost trends, benefit incidence, and detailed plan provisions. Detailed occupational earnings are available for metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas, broad geographic regions, and on a national basis.”
  • NCS Wage Data – “provides data on occupational wages for localities, broad geographic regions, and the nation.”
  • Occupational Employment Statistics – “produces employment and wage estimates for over 700 occupations … estimates are available for the nation as a whole, for individual States, and for metropolitan areas.”

General

  • Bureau of Labor Statistics – Comprehensive site for finding any labor-related statistic on the national or state level. Use the Bureau’s subject page, or find your topic by using the search or index feautures. To find regional or state information, simply click on the U.S. map at the bottom of the page or select the state of interest.
  • CPI – Tables, databases, and publications on consumer prices.
  • Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities – “provides data on illnesses and injuries on the job and data on worker fatalities.”
  • Monthly Labor Review – This BLS publication provides articles on labor-related issues with incorporated statistics.
  • Local Area Unemployment Statistics – “produces monthly and annual employment, unemployment, and labor force data for Census regions and divisions, States, counties, metropolitan areas, and many cities, by place of residence.”
  • PPI – Tables, databases, and publications on prices received by producers.
  • Women’s Bureau – Includes current and historical statistics.

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Taxes

  • Tax Statistics – Provides a bounty of data on businesses, individuals, and charitable or exempt organizations. Includes links to several editions of the IRS Data Book. Another interesting feature provides statistics by tax form number.

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Transportation

  • Aviation Data & Statistics – : On this web page of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), you can access data about airlines, airports, and related topics.
  • Bureau of Transportation Statistics – provides databases for many of its publications and links to several other topics such as airline information, international transportation statistics, and press releases.
  • Highway Statistics – Dating back to 1992, this series “consists of annual reports containing analyzed statistical data on motor fuel; motor vehicles; driver licensing; highway-user taxation; State and local government highway finance; highway mileage, and Federal aid for highways.”
  • National Transportation Statistics – On this website of the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, you can access statistics on the U.S. transportation system, including its physical components, safety record, and other relevant aspects.

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