#6: West Virginia
Population: 1,852,994
Growth rate: 2.5%
Unemployment rate: 9.3%
The boom decades of the early 20th century, when population growth reached as high as 27.4% from 1900 to 1910, are long past for the Mountain State. The mining of coal, the chief contributor to the state's economy, has become much more mechanized, requiring less manpower. Once the industry employed hundreds of thousands of workers, now only about 20,000 miners are left.
The state's population has fallen in three of the past six decades and is off more than 9% from its 1950 peak. In the 2000s, it gained little more than 10,000 residents.
Growth rate: 2.5%
Unemployment rate: 9.3%
The boom decades of the early 20th century, when population growth reached as high as 27.4% from 1900 to 1910, are long past for the Mountain State. The mining of coal, the chief contributor to the state's economy, has become much more mechanized, requiring less manpower. Once the industry employed hundreds of thousands of workers, now only about 20,000 miners are left.
The state's population has fallen in three of the past six decades and is off more than 9% from its 1950 peak. In the 2000s, it gained little more than 10,000 residents.
NEXT: #7: Vermont
Last updated December 21 2010: 1:46 PM ET
