Biggest US Cities in 1860 - Historical Population Data

Cities in Bold = State Capitals

Top 100 Biggest US Cities In The Year 1860

Rank	City	1860 Population	Growth Rate (Annual)
1	New York, NY	813,669	4.7%
2	Philadelphia, PA	565,529	16.6%
3	Brooklyn, NY	266,661	10.7%
4	Baltimore, MD	212,418	2.3%
5	Boston, MA	177,840	2.7%
6	New Orleans, LA	168,675	3.8%
7	Cincinnati, OH	161,044	3.4%
8	St. Louis, MO	160,773	7.5%
9	Chicago, IL	112,172	14.1%
10	Buffalo, NY	81,129	6.7%
11	Newark, NJ	71,941	6.3%
12	Louisville, KY	68,033	4.6%
13	Albany, NY	62,367	2.1%
14	Washington, DC	61,122	4.3%
15	San Francisco, CA	56,802	–
16	Providence, RI	50,666	2.0%
17	Pittsburgh, PA	49,221	0.5%
18	Rochester, NY	48,204	2.8%
19	Detroit, MI	45,619	8.1%
20	Milwaukee, WI	45,246	8.5%
21	Cleveland, OH	43,417	9.8%
22	Charleston, SC	40,522	-0.6%
23	New Haven, CT	39,267	6.8%
24	Troy, NY	39,235	3.1%
25	Richmond, VA	37,910	3.2%
26	Lowell, MA	36,827	1.0%
27	Mobile, AL	29,258	3.6%
28	Jersey City, NJ	29,226	–
29	Allegheny, PA	28,702	3.0%
30	Syracuse, NY	28,119	2.4%
31	Hartford, CT	26,917	7.1%
32	Portland, ME	26,341	2.4%
33	Cambridge, MA	26,060	5.5%
34	Roxbury, MA	25,137	3.2%
35	Charlestown, MA	25,065	3.8%
36	Worcester, MA	24,960	3.9%
37	Reading, PA	23,162	3.9%
38	Memphis, TN	22,623	9.9%
39	Utica, NY	22,529	2.5%
40	New Bedford, MA	22,300	3.1%
41	Savannah, GA	22,292	3.8%
42	Salem, MA	22,252	0.9%
43	Wilmington, DE	21,258	4.3%
44	Manchester, NH	20,107	3.7%
45	Dayton, OH	20,081	6.2%
46	Paterson, NJ	19,586	–
47	Lynn, MA	19,083	3.0%
48	Indianapolis, IN	18,611	8.7%
49	Columbus, OH	18,554	0.4%
50	Petersburg, VA	18,266	2.7%
51	Lawrence, MA	17,639	7.9%
52	Lancaster, PA	17,603	3.6%
53	Trenton, NJ	17,228	–
54	Nashville, TN	16,988	5.3%
55	Oswego, NY	16,816	3.3%
56	Covington, KY	16,471	5.8%
57	Bangor, ME	16,407	1.3%
58	Taunton, MA	15,376	3.9%
59	Springfield, MA	15,199	2.6%
60	Poughkeepsie, NY	14,726	2.5%
61	Norfolk, VA	14,620	0.2%
62	Camden, NJ	14,358	4.2%
63	Wheeling, VA	14,083	2.1%
64	Norwich, CT	14,048	–
65	Peoria, IL	14,045	–
66	Fall River, MA	14,026	2.0%
67	Sacramento, CA	13,785	–
68	Toledo, OH	13,768	–
69	Quincy, IL	13,718	–
70	Harrisburg, PA	13,405	5.5%
71	Newburyport, MA	13,401	3.4%
72	Chelsea, MA	13,395	–
73	Dubuque, IA	13,000	–
74	Alexandria, VA	12,652	3.8%
75	New Albany, IN	12,647	4.5%
76	Newburgh, NY	12,578	–
77	Augusta, GA	12,493	2.8%
78	Bridgeport, CT	12,106	–
79	North Providence, RI	11,818	4.4%
80	Elizabeth, NJ	11,567	–
81	Evansville, IN	11,484	–
82	Davenport, IA	11,267	–
83	New Brunswick, NJ	11,256	–
84	Auburn, NY	10,986	1.4%
85	Gloucester, MA	10,904	3.4%
86	Concord, NH	10,896	2.4%
87	Lockport, NY	10,871	–
88	Newport, RI	10,508	0.9%
89	St. Paul, MN	10,401	–
90	New London, CT	10,115	1.2%
91	Nashua, NH	10,065	–
92	Newport, KY	10,046	–
93	Waterbury, CT	10,004	–
94	Haverhill, MA	9,995	–
95	Dorchester, MA	9,769	2.1%
96	Hoboken, NJ	9,662	–
97	Columbus, GA	9,621	–
98	Schenectady, NY	9,579	0.7%
99	Atlanta, GA	9,554	–
100	Wilmington, NC	9,552	2.8%

View Biggest US Cities From Different Years

1800s	1840 1850 1860 1870 1880 1890
1900s	1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990
2000s	2000 2010 2020 2022

What was the largest city in the US in 1860?

In 1860, the largest city in the US was New York, with a population of 813,669. The second largest city was Philadelphia, with a population of 565,529. The third largest US city in 1860 was Brooklyn, with a population of 266,661.

What was the overall population of the United States in 1860?

The total population of the United States in 1860 was 31,443,321. In 1860, the top 10 largest cities held 8.7% of the population of the country. The top 100 cities accounted for 15.0% of the entire country's population.

What was the demographic makeup of the United States in 1860?

The racial demographics of the United States in 1860 were as follows: White population of 26,915,482 (85.6%), Black population of 4,433,508 (14.1%), American Indian, Eskimo, and Aleut population of 31,443 (0.1%), Asian and Pacific Islander population of 31,443 (0.1%).

What was the overall population of the world in 1860?

The overall population of the world in 1860 was around 1,303,000,000. In 1860 the United States population accounted for about 2.4% of the world's total population.