This article traces the trend in black/white interracial marriage between
1850–2000, using microlevel Census samples. The results show that the frequency
of interracial marriage has been highly responsive to the dynamic nature
of broader race relations. The growth of the Jim Crow racial state in the South
and segregation in the North led to a drastic decline in the frequency of interracial
marriage from 1880 to 1930. The frequency of interracial marriage
increased with the waning of this system between 1930 and 1940, but only began
to increase at a steady and rapid rate in the post–civil rights era. When disaggregated
by region, the results suggest a process of “latent” racism in the nonSouth,
and one of unequal gender suppression in the South. Results by nativity
and education are also discussed.