Historical Trends in Marriage, Divorce, & Widowhood

New Family Profile Series | October 2020

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Historical Trends in Marriage, Divorce, and Widowhood

Women's Marriage Rate, 1900-2018

Women’s Divorce Rate, 1900-2018

Proportions of Men and Women Currently Widowed Among Those Ever Married, 1940-2018

The NCFMR recently released a new three-part series of Family Profiles examining historical trends in marriage, divorce, and widowhood. Using data spanning over 100 years from the National Center for Health Statistics and the Census (via IPUMS-USA), these profiles illustrate the changing landscape of marital formation and dissolution in the United States. Patterns over time are also examined by race and ethnicity and educational attainment. Check out the entire series.

FP-20-21

Marriage: More than a Century of Change, 1900-2018

FP-20-22

Divorce: More than a Century of Change, 1900-2018

FP-20-23

Widowhood: Decades of Change, 1940-2018

Examine our new three-part series on historical trends in marriage, divorce, and widowhood

Browse our entire collection of Family Profile Series

The National Center for Family & Marriage Research (NCFMR) was established in 2007 to help improve our understanding of how family structure is linked to the health and well-being of children, adults, families, and communities and to inform policy development and programmatic responses.