This week, the U.S. Census Bureau issued 2012 population estimates showing that, for the first time ever, the rural population of America has suffered a measureable drop.
That might surprise you. For decades, farm country has bled young people in search of jobs. But since the 1960s, the nation’s agricultural regions – including many areas of Georgia – have been able to offset their population losses and pad their tax rolls with urban and suburban retirees in search of a little peace and quiet.
Many of us Baby Boomers can no longer afford the sound of crickets. Candidates for retirement are staying put in urban areas near jobs and other crucial amenities, census numbers indicate.
Overall, from 2010 to 2012, Georgia’s population crept up 2.3 percent to 9.9 million, the bureau reports. But along the state’s southern border, 11 of 19 counties lost population in that brief time span – continuing a long-term decline.
More surprising is that, of the 18 counties that line Georgia’s roof, eight have fewer people than they did in 2010. State officials have long pitched north Georgia as the nation’s next new retirement haven, especially for those who find Florida too hot, flat and – during hurricane season – windy.
via Rural areas a less populated place as Baby Boomers shy away | Political Insider | www.ajc.com.
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