| ← Poverty Rate Trends: Adirondack Park vs United States | ↑Table of Contents | Poverty Rate Trends: Adirondack Park vs Rural America → |
Table 7 (below) shows that rural U.S. counties saw either a slight gain or a slight drop in their poverty rates. These regions also started in 1970 with poverty rates that were significantly higher than those of the Park Towns. The nearby rural areas in the Northeast U.S. saw growth in poverty rates in contrast to the decrease in those of the Park Towns.
Table 7: Change in the Poverty Rate in Rural America, 1970–2020
| Area | 1970 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Park Towns | 10.3% | 11.0% | +0.7 |
| Rural America | |||
| USDA Nonmetro U.S. | 17.2% | 15.4% | −1.8 |
| Low Density U.S. | 19.4% | 15.3% | −4.1 |
| USDA Nonmetro NE | 8.8% | 12.0% | +3.2 |
| Low Density NE | 12.7% | 14.1% | +1.4 |
The maps on these two pages show that the majority of the residents of the Rural Northeast U.S. and Rural America lived in places that saw a growth in their poverty rates higher than those of the Park Towns from 1970 to 2020 or had higher poverty rates in 2020. In all cases, the 2020 poverty rates for rural areas across the U.S. exceeded the Park Towns’ rate of 11.0%.
The decrease in the overall poverty rate in the Park Towns to 11.0% is a welcome trend. The high poverty rate in many areas of the U.S. and New York is one of the cruelest realities of modern American life. This is an important indicator that bears close watching in the years ahead.
From 1970 to 2020, the Park Towns’ poverty rate decreased in contrast to that of the majority of New York State, the U.S. and Rural America. In 2020, the poverty rate in the Park Towns was lower than that of the majority of New York State, the U.S. and Rural America. ❑
Figure 30: Comparison of changes in poverty rate from 1970 to 2020 between the Park Towns and the Rural Northeast U.S. counties
From 1970 to 2020, 71% of USDA Nonmetro Northeast U.S. counties had a larger increase in their poverty rate than did the Park Towns. These counties were home to 3.4 million people, 81% of the population of the Rural Northeast U.S.
Figure 31: Comparison of poverty rate in 2020 between the Park Towns and the Rural Northeast U.S. counties
In 2020, 65% of USDA Nonmetro Northeast U.S. counties had a higher poverty rate than did the Park Towns. These counties were home to 2.7 million people, 64% of the population of the Rural Northeast U.S.