ABSTRACT
The first census of the population of the Gold Coast was taken in 1891. From mid-1950, when the Government Statistician was kind enough to make available the proofs of the 1948 census report, until 1955 the writer was engaged in a study of population in the Gold Coast. It was decided to carry out preliminary mapping on the largest scale map available for each area. Traces were prepared with a 5-minute graticule, as used on the topographical maps. The vigorous growth of new hamlets and villages, mostly small, and their subsequent decline are characteristic of areas being developed for the cultivation of cocoa. Throughout most of Ghana urban growth is recent. No real or country-wide distinction was made in either 1931 or 1948 between “urban” and “rural” settlements. In 1948 certain towns were enumerated with the aid of a form which required detailed occupational returns.
