The present study compared the suicide rates in 39 states of the USA in 1918-1922 with their rates in 1980. The Pearson correlation between the 2 sets of rates was 0.27, significant but quite low. The mean suicide rate had not risen in 60 years. However, the variation in the suicide rates had decreased noticeably. The suicide rates of these 39 states have become more uniform over the last sixty years. (3 refs.)