General data
The United States is home to 336 million people. Their distribution in the states crossed by Route 66 is as follows: 12.8 million in Illinois, 5.9 million in Missouri and 2.9 million in Kansas (Midwest region), 3.8 million in Oklahoma, 25.1 million in Texas and 2 million in New Mexico, 6.4 million in Arizona and 37.3 million in California (American West). Along the way, Illinois, New Mexico and California share the largest populations, with Chicago (2.7 million), thethird largest city in the U.S., and Los Angeles (3.9 million), thesecond largest city in the U.S. behind New York, being the main employment hubs.
The unemployment rate in these states crossed by Route 66 is mostly higher than the national rate which, in November 2022, is 3.7% of the active population. At the same time, the unemployment rate was 6% in Illinois, 4.7% in Missouri, 2.7% in Kansas, 2.8% in Oklahoma, 3.4% in Texas, 4.1% in New Mexico, Arizona and California.
Settlement of the Midwest and West
When the Midwest was opened to settlement after the Revolutionary War, it was mainly German populations that settled there in large numbers, with a preference for the cities of Milwaukee, Chicago, Cincinnati and St. Louis. Half of them settled in the cities and half in the rural areas. In addition to the German population, there were also a large number of Irish, Northern European (Danes, Swedes, Norwegians, Finns) and Central European (Poles, Hungarians and Czechs) nationals. As a result of the segregation laws put in place at the end of the Civil War and the devastating effects of the Great Depression of 1930, it is estimated that more than 6 million African-Americans moved from the agricultural South to the large industrial cities of the Midwest (Chicago and St. Louis) between 1910 and 1970 in what is known as the Great Migration. Although the rate of African American population in the Midwest remains lower than that of all other populations, it is still significant. It is 14.33 percent in Illinois, 11.4 percent in Missouri, but only 5.69 percent in Kansas.
The West, on the other hand, was settled from Mexican lands (Texas in 1845, New Mexico and California in 1848) and from Native American territories (Oklahoma in particular, which from 1834 to 1907 constituted a large part of the Indian Territory). From New Mexico, there are no less than 19 pueblos and a significant part of the western part is occupied by the Navajo reservation. Gallup, which is not on the Navajo Reservation, has a very large Native American population (Navajos, Hopis, and Zunis). There is a 7.69% American Indian population in Oklahoma (303,000), 9.31% in New Mexico (195,000), and 4.3% in Arizona (311,000). Although California has only a percentage of its Native American population that is less than 1% of the overall total, it is nevertheless the state with the largest population (311,600). As for the Hispanic population, its presence is felt in all states. But while its percentage is less than 9 per cent in the Midwest and Oklahoma, it quickly reaches 27.8 per cent in Texas, 33.3 per cent in New Mexico, 19.6 per cent in Arizona and 19.5 per cent in California.
The African American population is small in the American West. This is due in part to the fact that the segregationist laws of the South implemented from 1877 onwards were quickly enforced in most of the new states as they joined the Union (1845 for Texas, 1850 for California, 1851 for Kansas, 1907 for Oklahoma), causing many African Americans who had come to seek refuge in the West to flee again. In Los Angeles, the percentage of African-American population was 8.8%, while it was only 5.72% for all of California and 4.53% for Arizona.
The American Indians
When Christopher Columbus discovered America in 1492, he thought he had reached the West Indies. Because of this, the colonized peoples were quickly baptized "Indians", a term that is still used to refer to the populations of the New World. Throughout history, Americans have coined a variety of terms that we often hear or read about: Native Americans, Native peoples, American Indians, First Nations, Aboriginal Peoples, Indigenous Peoples of America, Amerindians, etc. But these peoples are so different from the rest of the world that they are often referred to as Indians. But these peoples are so diverse that they refuse all these "categories" that bring them together, and prefer to use the name of their nation or tribe. The arrival of the Europeans in the 16th century led to a significant mortality among the Indian population due to mistreatment, diseases and wars. With colonization, the Indians lost most of their territories, were driven out and parked in reservations with often infertile land. Most of them are west of the Mississippi, in arid or semi-arid areas shunned by the whites, as a consequence of the expulsion, from 1830 onwards, of the Indians living in the east. Their social and economic situation continued to deteriorate: famine, unemployment and poverty were often their daily lot.
At the very beginning of the 20th century, there were only 250,000 Indians in the whole country. It was not until the 1970s that the Americans finally took into consideration these peoples whom they had always considered as "sub-populations". They were no longer under house arrest and could move around like any other American citizen. Some have had real successes, but what has allowed tribes to get rich and develop is the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988, which allows them to open casinos. Their average income has increased in 20 years by about 50%. On the other hand, they keep their organization in tribes which have each a chief and/or a tribal council and which can organize referendums or assert their rights before the federal justice. Some, like the Cherokee, even have a constitution that asserts rights. Tribes receive federal aid in proportion to their membership. Some Indian reservations have their own newspapers that report on a variety of information, including tribal council decisions. As a result, the birth rate increased, diseases decreased and the death rate dropped.
At the same time, traditions are revived. Many Indians live outside the reservations, often in the cities, but they maintain close links with those who have remained on the spot. Nevertheless, there are great differences between the tribes according to their geographical location. In spite of all these improvements, the Indians of certain reservations are like members of the fourth world if we compare their income, their life expectancy, their level of education to the national averages. There is still a large segment of the American Indian population that suffers from AIDS, alcoholism, drugs, poverty and high unemployment, which leads to violence. Moreover, according to the American law, the reserves do not belong to the Indians, they are only lent to them by the American State which is the real owner. The U.S. Congress has the power to remove them and "return them to the public domain"... There were approximately 2,900,000 American Indians in 2022. The largest tribes being the Navajo, Sioux, Chippewa, Apache, Blackfeet and Iroquois.
During your trip on Route 66, you will cross several reservations. The main ones are the Pueblo, Navajo, Hualapai and Mohave reservations. From Oklahoma on, other names should catch your attention: Quapaw, Miami, Muscogge (Creek)..
Pueblos. The Pueblos are the descendants of the Anasazi, now extinct. They are distributed in 19 pueblos ("villages" in Spanish) in New Mexico: Acoma, Cochiti, Isleta, Jemez, Laguna, Nambe, Ohkay Owingeh, Picuris, Pojoaque, Sandia, San Felipe, San Ildefonso, Santa Ana, Santa Clara, Santo Domingo, Taos, Tesuque, Zia, and Zuni, as well as a reservation in Arizona (Hopi Reservation, north of Petrified Forest National Park), surrounded by the huge Navajo reservation. In total, the Pueblo population is estimated at 55,300, a figure that needs to be refined for each community. For the two largest groups, there are an estimated 12,000 Zuni and 7,000 Hopi. Tribal headquarters are located in the various pueblos, and in Kykotsmovi for the Hopi.
Navajos. Of all the Indian tribes in the United States, the Navajo group is second only to the Cherokee. They number about 250,000 people scattered throughout northwestern New Mexico, northeastern Arizona and southeastern Utah. Their tribal headquarters is Window Rock, Arizona.
Hualapais. Their reservation is in Arizona. They are the occupants of the West Rim of the Grand Canyon. Their population is estimated at 1,600. Their tribal headquarters is Peach Springs.
Mohaves. They are found in two reservations around the Colorado River and on the three bordering states (California, Nevada and Arizona). Their population is estimated at 2,000. Their tribal headquarters are Needles (California) and Parker (Arizona).
