Shifts in the Denominational Demography of Middletown, 1924-1977

Shifts in denominational preference and its correlates among residents of Middletown are assessed using data from sample surveys by the Middletown III project supplemented by archival data and comparisons with the descriptions of the city in the Lynds' Middletown. Contemporary Middletown is predominantly Protestant. Demographically the gap between the city's Southern and Northern Protestants is the major denominational cleavage. There is a trend toward denominational convergence: on many characteristics the city's Catholics are indistinguishable from its Protestants. There is no evidence of a decline in participation in organized religion. An apparent stability in the denominational distribution of the population masks substantial intergenerational switching.