the number of households to 52.9 million by 1989. Before the 1950s, about 4 out of 5 households were occupied by married couples in 1910, 1930, and 1950, but after 1950, nonfamily living arrangements became much more common as the ratio of married couples with their own household to total households dropped gradually from 78 percent in 1950 to 74 percent by 1965. The ratio fell more rapidly after 1965, declining to 64 percent by 1977 and 56 percent by 1989. There was relatively slow growth in the number of married couple families while at the same time there were large increases in the number of family households maintained by a person with no spouse present for the most part, d
...