Bob Minzesheimer

USA TODAY

Study ranks 77 largest cities

Lead study author John Miller concedes that it measures quantity%2C not quality

New England and Mid-Atlantic score higher than Southwest and California

For the fourth consecutive year, Washington is America's most literate city, according to an annual statistical study ranking the nation's 77 largest cities.

The study, conducted by Central Connecticut State University President John Miller, is based on data that include the number of bookstores, library resources, Internet use, educational levels and newspaper circulation.

Given the popularity of lists that rank the safest cities or best retirement communities, Miller began his study in 2003 to draw attention to "literacy: how much people are reading and where they are reading the most."

He acknowledges that the study, which includes cities with populations of at least 250,000, measures quantity, not quality. "That's more subjective and harder to verify," he says. To those who complain or question his rankings, he says: "Show me the data."

The rankings for the top 10 cities in 2013, with comparisons to 2012:

1. Washington (same as 2012)

2. Seattle (same as 2012)

3. Minneapolis (same as 2012)

4. (tie) Atlanta (up from No. 8)

4. (tie) Pittsburgh (held No. 4 alone in 2012)

6. Denver (down from No. 5)

7. St. Paul (down from No. 6)

8. Boston (down from No. 7)

9. St. Louis (same as 2012)

10. San Francisco (up from No. 11)

Miller says some of findings seem counterintuitive:

• Parts of the "Rust Belt aren't so rusty" when it comes to public libraries. Cleveland is No. 1, and Pittsburgh is No. 2, based on the number of branches, volumes, circulation and staff per capita.

• Boston is No. 27 in education levels, despite being home to scores of colleges, because of "its abysmal high school dropout rates."

• Washington, not New York (No. 16 on the overall list), scores highest for the number of magazine and journal publishers "because of all the trade publications devoted to politics and the federal government."

Miller, the former chancellor at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and dean of the College of Education at Florida State University, notes regional differences:

Older cities in New England and the Mid-Atlantic generally scored higher; cities in California and the Southwest the lowest. At the bottom of the list: Bakersfield, Calif. (No. 77), Corpus Christi, Texas (No. 76), Stockton, Calif. (No. 75) and El Paso, Texas (No. 74). Miller says "it may take a very long history to develop a culture of literate practices."

Next year, he's planning to take his study global and rank the most literate countries. He predicts that Finland may surprise people.

Details of the 2013 study are posted at ccsu.edu/AMLC2013

Here is the full list from "America's Most Literate Cities" for 2013. (The number in parentheses is the 2012 ranking.)

1. Washington (1)

2. Seattle (2)

3. Minneapolis (3)

4. (tie) Atlanta (8)

4. (tie) Pittsburgh (4)

6. Denver (5)

7. St. Paul (6)

8. Boston (7)

9. St. Louis (9)

10. San Francisco (11)

11. Portland, Ore. (10)

12. Cincinnati (12)

13. Kansas City (13)

14. Cleveland (14)

15. Baltimore (19)

16. New York (21)

17. Honolulu (tied for 15)

18. Lexington-Fayette, Ky. (24)

19. New Orleans (25)

20. Virginia Beach (17)

21. (tie) Austin (23)

21. (tie) Nashville-Davidson, Tenn. (26)

23. Raleigh, N.C. (18)

24. Tulsa (22)

25. Tampa (20)

26. Columbus, Ohio (32)

27. Oakland (tied for 15)

28. (tie) Chicago (31)

28. (tie) Colorado Springs (27)

30. Lincoln, Neb. (28)

31. Miami (34)

32. San Diego (36)

33. Buffalo (29)

34. Philadelphia (30)

35. Newark (33)

36. Indianapolis (37)

37. Dallas (47)

38. (tie) Omaha (38)

38. (tie) San Jose (35)

40. Sacramento (42)

41. Detroit (46)

42. Tucson (48)

43. Plano, Texas (45)

44. Toledo, Ohio (44)

45. Albuquerque (39)

46. Louisville-Jefferson Co., Ky. (49)

47. (tie) Fort Wayne, Ind. (41)

47. (tie) Milwaukee (40)

49. Fort Worth (52)

50. Greensboro, N.C. (43)

51. Oklahoma City (51)

52. Charlotte (50)

53. (tie) Las Vegas (54)

53. (tie) Santa Ana, Calif. (57)

55. Jersey City (53)

56. (tie) Anchorage (56)

56. (tie) Houston (60.5)

58. Jacksonville (55)

59. Phoenix (59)

60. Henderson, Nev. (58)

61. Riverside, Calif. (63)

62. Wichita (62)

63. Arlington, Texas (64)

64. Los Angeles (60.5)

65. Memphis (66)

66. Glendale, Ariz. (65)

67. Long Beach, Calif. (67)

68. Mesa, Ariz. (68)

69. Aurora, Colo. (69)

70. (tie) Chula Vista, Calif. (70.5)

70. (tie) Fresno (70)

72. Anaheim, Calif. (72)

73. San Antonio (71)

74. El Paso (73)

75. Stockton, Calif. (74)

76. Corpus Christi, Texas (75)

77. Bakersfield, Calif. (74)

Source: Central Connecticut State University