The U.S. Census Bureau is highlighting the manufacturing sector's vital role and significant contribution to the nation's economy this week, ahead of the 15th annual Manufacturing Day on Oct. 2.
Observed annually on the first Friday in October, Manufacturing Day celebrates the benefits and potential of modern manufacturing while encouraging greater interest in manufacturing careers, the bureau said.
The Census Bureau has published a Manufacturing Week homepage featuring manufacturing statistics, data products and resources.
In a new America Counts story, "American Manufacturing: A History in Census Data," the bureau traces how manufacturing data has been collected since 1810, when U.S. Marshals gathered it alongside their census-taking duties during the early stages of the Industrial Revolution. They asked questions on 25 categories of manufactured products and more than 200 types of goods, from tobacco to food.
More than two centuries later, multiple Census Bureau surveys collect data on manufacturing companies and their products. The bureau said it is looking back at the nation's manufacturing history through its data in recognition of the 15th anniversary of Manufacturing Day.
The Census Bureau describes itself as the nation's leading provider of quality data about its people and economy and the federal government's largest statistical agency.