Category: News and Views
America's Most Literate cities
(Study done at the University of Wisconsin - Whitewater, 2004)
How well does your city cultivate literate, 'bookish' behavior in its
citizenry?
America's Most Literate Cities 2004 finds a statistical answer for 79
cities, drawing on numerous data sources to measure the public's propensity
for reading. The information is compiled from U.S. Census data, newspaper
circulation rates, magazine publishing, educational attainment levels,
library resources and booksellers.
This year's ranking enhances the original study done in 2003 by adding 15
new cities, lowering the population threshold to 200,000 or more. The study
adds nine new statistical variables and incorporates Census data unavailable
last year to provide a richer look at a city's resources.
Jack Miller, chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, is author
of the study. To see how your city fared, click "Overall Rankings" and "Rank
by Category.
Top 10 - Overall Rankings
This ranking represents the total score tallied by each city across five
different literacy categories:Educational attainment; booksellers; newspaper
circulation; library resources; and periodicals published. All categories
were compared against the city's total population. See "Rank by Category"
for more detailed results.
Rank
Population
1. Minneapolis, MN
382,618
2. Seattle, WA
563,374
3. Pittsburgh, PA
334,563
4. Madison, WI
208,054
5. Cincinnati, OH
331,285
6. Washington, DC
572,059
7. Denver, CO
554,636
8. Boston, MA
589,141
9. Portland, OR
529,121
10. San Francisco, CA
776,733
Numbers 11-30
Rank
Population
11. Columbus, OH
711,470
12. Kansas City, MO
441,545
13. St. Louis, MO
348,189
14. Cleveland, OH
478,403
15. Atlanta, GA
416,474
16. St. Paul, MN
287,151
17. Louisville, KY
256,231
18. Birmingham, AL
242,820
19. Scottsdale, AZ
202,705
20. Colorado Springs, CO
360,890
21. Tulsa, OK
393,049
22. Austin, TX
656,562
23. Rochester, NY
219,773
24. Norfolk, VA
234,403
25. Baltimore, MD
651,154
26. Akron, OH
217,074
27. Indianapolis, IN
791,926
28. Charlotte, NC
540,828
29. Nashville-Davidson, TN
569,891
30. Baton Rouge, LA
227,818
31-50
Rank
Population
31. Tucson, AZ
486,699
32. Omaha, NE
390,007
33. Sacramento, CA
407,018
34. Honolulu CDP, HI
371,657
34. Milwaukee, WI
596,974
36. Tampa, FL
303,447
37. Miami, FL
362,470
38. Montgomery, AL
201,568
39. Oklahoma City, OK
506,132
40. Toledo, OH
313,619
41. Albuquerque, NM
448,606
42. Lincoln, NE
225,581
43. New Orleans, LA
484,674
44. San Diego, CA
1,223,400
45. Fort Wayne, IN
205,727
46. Philadelphia, PA
1,517,550
47. Las Vegas, NV
478,434
48. Virginia Beach, VA
425,257
49. New York City, NY
8,008,278
50. Shreveport, LA
200,145
51-79
Rank
Population
51. Buffalo, NY
292,648
52. Newark, NJE
273,546
53. Greensboro, NC
223,891
54. Dallas, TX
1,188,580
55. Wichita, KS
344,284
56. Fort Worth, TX
534,694
57. Oakland, CA
399,848
58. Chicago, IL
2,896,016
59. Plano, TX
222,030
60 Phoenix, AZ
1,321,045
61. Glendale, AZ
218,812
62. San Jose, CA
225,581
63. Houston, TX
1,953,631
64. Jacksonville, FL
735,617
65. Mesa, AZ
396,375
66. Fremont, CA
203,413
67. Memphis, TN
650,100
68. Los Angeles, CA
3,694,820
69. Detroit, MI
951,270
70. Garland, TX
215,768
71. Fresno, CA
427,652
72. Arlington, TX
332,969
73. Long Beach, CA
461,522
74. Anaheim, CA
328,014
75. San Antonio, TX
1,144,646
76. Santa Ana, CA
337,977
77. Corpus Christi, TX
277,454
78. Hialeah, FL
226,419
79. El Paso, TX
563,662
Source:
http://www.uww.edu/advancement/npa/special_reports/cities/