Washington and Dallas are known for one of the most heated rivalries in professional football. Now, it seems, there's another competition of sorts: which area is growing faster than the other.

According to the latest government tabulation, Rockwall County on the eastern side of Dallas registered the fastest growth of any county in the country for the 12-month period that ended July 1, 2002.

But two distant Northern Virginia counties across the Potomac from the Nation's Capital were second and ninth fastest growing counties during the same period, the Census Bureau reported. Texas has only one county in the Top 10. But both cities were bested by Atlanta, which had three counties on the list.

However, the nation's most populous county remains Los Angeles, which also was the top gainer in terms of sheer numbers during the period.

Rockwall grew at a rate of 7.9 percent, which was seven times faster than the nation as a whole. But it's still a relatively small jurisdiction, so the increase is a bit deceiving. It actually added only 3,728 people, bringing the total population to 50,858.

Loudoun County, on the other hand, added 13,874 people, bringing its total to 204,054. That's a growth rate of 7.3 percent.

The third and fourth fastest growers were in the Atlanta area. Henry and Forsyth both grew at a 7.1 percent clip. But Henry added more folks 9,280 vs. 7,741 for Forsyth. At last count, their totals were 139,699 and 116,924, respectively.

Flagler County, Fla., near Daytona Beach, ranked fifth in growth at 6.9 percent, adding 3,719 people and bringing its total population to 57,377.

Douglas County outside of Denver ranked sixth in terms of percentage growth at 6.9 percent. But Newton County, Ga. and Scott County in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota were close behind at 6.8 percent each.

Douglas added 13,480 people during the year, bringing its population to 211,091, while Newton saw the number of people living within its confines grow by 4,451, to 71,594, and Scott added 6,214, bring its total to 103,681.

Rounding out the Top 10 were Stafford, the other Northern Virginia jurisdiction, and Delaware County, near Columbus, Ohio.

Stafford registered an increase of 6,120, a 6.2 percent jump to104,823, while Delaware added 7,174 folks, a 6.1 percent increase to125,399.

None of the above counties are among the nation's most populous, however.

That list is headed by Los Angeles County, which the largest numerical gainer last year. With an increase of 129,000, LA County now tops the country with 9.8 million residents.

Cook County, Ill., the second most populous jurisdiction, was the only one of the ten largest to actually lose people. The tax roles there dipped by 5,704 to a mere 5.4 million soles.

The other big populations centers are: Harris County, Texas (Houston), 3.6 million; Maricopa County, Ariz. (Phoenix), 3.3 million; Orange County, Calif., 2.9 million; Kings County, N.Y., 2.5 million; Miami-Dade County, Fla., 2.3 million; Dallas County, 2.3 million, and Queens, N.Y., 2.2 million.

Here are some other interesting tidbits from the latest Census Bureau figures:

Published: April 30, 2003

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When Lew Sichelman first started writing about housing in 1969, he was the youngest real estate writer in the country. Now, 37 years later, he's one of the oldest -- and most decorated. He has been rated the top housing columnist in the country by the National Association of Realtors as well as by his peers in the National Association of Real Estate Editors. Indeed, NAREE has recognized his work on numerous occasions. One year - due to his advancing age, he can't recall which one - he earned top honors in the annual NAREE Journalism Contest in three out of the four major writing categories. It was the first time one writer has won so many NAREE awards in a single year. Known for his ability to make even the most difficult topics understandable, Sichelman also has been honored by the National Association of Home Builders and the Mortgage Bankers Association. He began providing in-depth coverage of and consumer-oriented information about housing and housing finance at the Washington Daily News, where he was real estate editor. He held that same position for nine more years at the Washington Star, which purchased the News in 1972. The Star, a so-called "writer's newspaper" which also had the misfortune of being an evening paper, was put out of its misery in 1981, and Sichelman, who had begun self-syndicating his column in 1978, decided to become a full-time columnist. Today, his column, "The Housing Scene," is distributed by United Media to newspapers throughout the country. He also is on the staff of National Mortgage News, an independent newspaper which is considered the bible of the mortgage business. And he writes for numerous other publications, including MarketWatch.com, where he answers readers questions once a week, Sports Illustrated (don't ask), RealtyTimes.com, BigBuilder and others. Sichelman is married, the father of five and grandfather of eleven.