Photo of Erin Nueslein by Kanji Takeno

Maryland by the numbers

Treasure-trove of state stats selling fast

By Jan Lucas

It may not be the "beach book" of choice, but the newest edition of the TU-produced Maryland Statistical Abstract is chock-full of intriguing information about our state.

RESI Research and Consulting, in cooperation with the Maryland Department of Business and Economics, released the 352-page hardcover book in October.  

Since the first biennial edition appeared in the mid-1990s, the Maryland Statistical Abstract has been the most comprehensive and reliable source of information on the state’s economic, social and demographic trends. Erin Nueslein, the RESI economist who served as project leader, says it’s popular with public- and private-sector decision makers, librarians, researchers and others seeking up-to-date statistics.   

Nueslein says abstract compilers took a year to assemble the 2006 edition, drawing upon a “vast number of sources” that included Web-based documents and specialized reports from state agencies. “Some pieces of information were difficult to locate,” she adds. “We gathered data from a host of national and state databases as well as from other publications, and it often proved to be a time-consuming process.”  

The Maryland Statistical Abstract’s 21 chapters offer the latest data on everything from population to climate and natural resources. Information is presented in easy-to-scan tables, with black-and-white maps and graphs interspersed throughout. The volume is as accessible to browsers as it is to scholars and serious data-collectors.    

As for statistics, a casual look yields the following:

• Smokers caused 27 forest fires in the state in 2005.

• Baltimore County is home to more manufacturing establishments than any of Maryland’s 24 jurisdictions.

• The number of milk cows in the state fell from 78,000 in 2003 to 74,000 in 2004.

• Fully 47.5 percent of Worcester County’s housing stock falls within the vacant, seasonal or migratory category.

• St. Mary’s County reported Maryland’s highest birth rate.

Although the initial print run has been selling fast, Nueslein says the 2006 Maryland Statistical Abstract remains available.    

To obtain a copy, go to http://www.towson.edu/outreach/resi/abstract.asp for a downloadable order form. The abstract may be purchased in three formats: book only ($75), CD only ($40), and book and CD ($100).

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