Table of Contents Vermont's population in 1997 was 588,978 as
estimated by the U.S. Bureau of the Census. This is a 4.7
percent increase from the 1990 Census count of 562,758, and an
increase of 324 people from last year's estimate of 588,654 The
largest segment of the population is the 35 to 44-year-old age
group, and has been since 1991. The fastest growing segment of
the population is the 45 to 64-year-old group, with a 26.7
percent increase since the 1990 Census. The under 5-year-old
segment of Vermont's population is shrinking as a result of
declining birth rates, showing a decrease of 17.8 percent since
the 1990 Census. The sex distribution of Vermonters has remained
basically the same as 1990, with males outnumbering females up
to age 24, females slightly outnumbering males from age 25 to
39, males slightly outnumbering females between ages 40 and 49,
and females outnumbering males by a widening margin as age
increases after age 50. The age-sex distribution of Vermont is
illustrated in Figure 3. More d