Geographic center of the United States
Encyclopedia
Before 1959, the National Geodetic Survey (NGS) placed the center of the United States
at a point near the town of Lebanon, Kansas
. When Alaska and Hawaii joined the union in 1959, the NGS designated Belle Fourche
, South Dakota, the geographic center of the United States. The actual location and marker are about twenty miles north of the town on an uninhabited parcel of private pastureland. There is not much to see at the actual location except an old flag on small concrete slab with the station marker set in the concrete. On the marker it reads "U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey Reference Marker." According to the NGS data sheet, the actual marker is "set in an irregular mass of concrete 36 inches below the surface of the ground." However, in the town of Belle Fourche, there is a park dedicated to the honor.
Geographic Center of the Contiguous United States
One of the locations claimed to be the Geographic Center of the Contiguous United States is pinpointed by a historical marker that is located within a small park near the town of Lebanon, Kansas. It is located at the intersection of AA Road and K-191, accessible by a turn-off from U.S...
at a point near the town of Lebanon, Kansas
Lebanon, Kansas
Lebanon is a city in Smith County, Kansas, United States, in the north central part of the state. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 218. In 1918, a scientific survey established that the geographic center of what was then the United States lies near the town and a monument was...
. When Alaska and Hawaii joined the union in 1959, the NGS designated Belle Fourche
Belle Fourche, South Dakota
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which are land and is water.-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 4,565 people, 1,854 households, and 1,186 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,446.9 people per square mile...
, South Dakota, the geographic center of the United States. The actual location and marker are about twenty miles north of the town on an uninhabited parcel of private pastureland. There is not much to see at the actual location except an old flag on small concrete slab with the station marker set in the concrete. On the marker it reads "U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey Reference Marker." According to the NGS data sheet, the actual marker is "set in an irregular mass of concrete 36 inches below the surface of the ground." However, in the town of Belle Fourche, there is a park dedicated to the honor.
See also
- Geographic center of the contiguous United StatesGeographic Center of the Contiguous United StatesOne of the locations claimed to be the Geographic Center of the Contiguous United States is pinpointed by a historical marker that is located within a small park near the town of Lebanon, Kansas. It is located at the intersection of AA Road and K-191, accessible by a turn-off from U.S...
- Mean center of United States population
- Median center of United States populationMedian center of United States populationThe median center of U.S. population is determined by the United States Census Bureau from the results of each census. The Bureau defines it to be:- See also :* Mean center of United States population* Center of population...
- Center of populationCenter of populationIn demographics, the center of population of a region is a geographical point that describes a centerpoint of the region's population...