Populations continue to drop

Alexis Barker
NLJ News Editor
 
Weston County has lost a total of 241 people over the past eight years, while Newcastle’s population has dropped by 131 residents, according to a June 20 report from the Economic Analysis Division of the Wyoming Department of Administration and Information. The same release also reports that the median age of Weston County residents is currently 44.6, while the statewide median age is 38 and the nationwide median age is 38.2.
Further breakdown of the resident age in Weston County shows that in 2018, out of the 6,967 people living in the county, 1,447 were under the age 18, 4,091 were age 18 to 64, 1,429 were over the age of 65 and 200 were over the age of 85. 
Increases were seen in the number of 5 to 9 year olds, 35 to 39 year olds, 40 to 44 year olds, 60 to 64 year olds, 70 to 74 year olds and 80 to 84 year olds residents in Weston County from 2017 to 2018. 
Looking back to 2010 in the report, one would find that while the number of people living in Weston County under 18 and between 18 and 64 have decreased from 2010 to 2018 while the number of those over 65 and over 85 has increased, showing that Weston County’s population continues to age. 
The racial mix of those residing in Weston County has also fluctuated over the years, according to the same population report. A breakdown from 2010 shows that out of the 7,208 people residing in Weston County, 216 were Hispanic, 18 were African American or Alaska Natives, 21 were Asian, 2 were Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander and 99 individuals represented 2 or more races for a total of 442 “minority” members in the community. The number of Caucasians living the community at the same time totaled 6,766. 
In 2018, 700 community members represented “minority” races while 6,267 people were listed as Caucasian. A further breakdown shows 45 African Americans, 102 American Indian or Alaska Natives, 132 Asians, 1 Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander and 136 individuals of two or more races living in Weston County. 
“About three-fourths of larger cities and towns in Wyoming lost residents between July 1, 2017 and July 1, 2018 according to population estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau,” the release states. 
The report says that Newcastle had a population of 3,402 in July 2018, down 10 people from July 2017, representing a 0.3% decrease. According to the release, the county lost 19 people or 0.3% of the total population of 6,967 over the same time period. 
Newcastle’s eight-year loss of 131 people represents 3.7% of the total population. During the same period, Upton lost 36 people, or 3.3% of its total population. Countywide, 241 people, or 3.3% of the total population, left the county for one reason or another, according to the report. 
Population loss can be attributed to two factors – death and births or migration – according to the report. From July 1, 2017, to July 1, 2018, Weston County experienced 66 births and 68 deaths, for a net decrease in population of 2. Net international migration is responsible for an increase of 30 people in the county, according to the report, while net domestic migration is responsible for a loss of 48 individuals, for an overall loss of 18. 
Over the past eight years, 638 births were recorded in the county, with 563 deaths,  accounting for a population increase of 75. Migration resulted in a net loss of 319 people in the county during the same time frame.