Contuning Growth of L.A.

In the 1930s and 1940s, the region also received two waves of major migrations: that of farm families from the southern Great Plains migrating west to escape the Dust Bowl, and that of African Americans moving out of the American South.

During World War II (1939-1945) the need for labor, especially in ship and aircraft production, boosted the population even more. The population of Los Angeles County jumped from 3 million to 4.7 million between 1940 and 1950.

The population explosion continued from the 1950s through the 1970s. The increase in this period can be attributed to the Cold War demand for the region’s defense industries, but also to U.S. popular culture.

Attractive images of Los Angeles beaches, palm trees, convertible cars, and backyard swimming pools flooded U.S. movies, television programs, and advertising. Primarily thanks to Los Angeles, in 1970 California became the most populous state in the United States.

Although the growth rate slowed in the 1980s and 1990s, the absolute population has continued to rise.
In the year 2000, the population of the City of Los Angeles was 3,694,820, that of Los Angeles County was 9,519,338, and that of the Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County CMSA was 16,373,645. In 2004, the population of the City of Los Angeles was estimated at 3,845,541.