Comprehensive development plan

Between 1970 and 1980, Carroll County’s population increased at a rate of 1.8 percent per year as seen in Table III-2. During that decade, the 18.1 percent increase was driven by a boom in manufacturing, specifically in the textile and furniture industries. This rapid growth was stifled during the 1980s as the county’s population decreased by 2.5 percent, then grew again during the 1990s at an average annual rate of one percent.

The decline in the 1980s had little effect on the overall population growth of the last 50 years. Overall, between 1950 and 2000, Carroll County’s population increased by 9.6 percent at an annual rate of 0.2 percent. Nevertheless, this population trend lagged behind both the Mount Rogers region and the Commonwealth of Virginia. From 1950 to 2000, statewide population grew by 2.3 percent per year on average, while the population in the Mount Rogers region grew at a rate of 0.3 percent per year.

Table III-2
Population Change^1
Virginia, MRPDC, and Carroll County
By Decade
1950-2000
Decade	Virginia			MRPDC			Carroll County
	Numeric	Percent	Average Annual	Numeric	Percent	Average Annual	Numeric	Percent	Average Annual
	Change	Change	Growth	Change	Change	Growth	Change	Change	Growth
1950-1960	648,269	19.53%	1.95%	-3,692	-2.25%	-0.23%	-2,977	-11.15%	-1.12%
1960-1970	684,499	17.26%	1.73%	-653	-0.41%	-0.04%	-626	-2.64%	-0.26%
1970-1980	695,349	14.95%	1.49%	21,706	13.62%	1.36%	4,178	18.09%	1.81%
1980-1990	842,400	15.76%	1.58%	-2,913	-1.61%	-0.16%	-676	-2.48%	-0.25%
1990-2000	889,318	14.37%	1.44%	11,815	6.63%	0.66%	2,651	9.97%	1.00%
1950-2000	3,759,835	113.29%	2.27%	26,263	16.04%	0.32%	2,550	9.55%	0.19%
1. Analysis done by MRPDC based on the data found in Table III-1.