Unincorporated area - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Law

Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...

, an unincorporated area is a region of land

Real property

In English Common Law, real property, real estate, realty, or immovable property is any subset of land that has been legally defined and the improvements to it made by human efforts: any buildings, machinery, wells, dams, ponds, mines, canals, roads, various property rights, and so forth...

that is not a part of any municipality

Municipality

A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...

.

To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation

Municipal corporation

A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province in which...

, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or tax

Tax

To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...

ed by a municipal government. Such regions are generally administered by default as a part of larger administrative division

Administrative division

An administrative division, subnational entity, or country subdivision is a portion of a country or other political division, established for the purpose of government. Administrative divisions are each granted a certain degree of autonomy, and are required to manage themselves through their own...

s, such as a township

Township

The word township is used to refer to different kinds of settlements in different countries. Township is generally associated with an urban area. However there are many exceptions to this rule. In Australia, the United States, and Canada, they may be settlements too small to be considered urban...

, borough

Borough

A borough is an administrative division in various countries. In principle, the term borough designates a self-governing township although, in practice, official use of the term varies widely....

, county

County

A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain modern nations. Historically in mainland Europe, the original French term, comté, and its equivalents in other languages denoted a jurisdiction under the sovereignty of a count A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain...

, state, province

Province

A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...

, canton, parish

Parish

A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...

, or country

Country

A country is a region legally identified as a distinct entity in political geography. A country may be an independent sovereign state or one that is occupied by another state, as a non-sovereign or formerly sovereign political division, or a geographic region associated with a previously...

.

Occasionally small towns disincorporate, which may happen if they become fiscally insolvent

Insolvency

Insolvency means the inability to pay one's debts as they fall due. Usually used to refer to a business, insolvency refers to the inability of a company to pay off its debts.Business insolvency is defined in two different ways:...

, and services become the responsibility of a higher administration. An example is Cabazon, California

Cabazon, California

Cabazon is a census-designated place in Riverside County, California, United States. The population was 2,535 at the 2010 census, up from 2,229 at the 2000 census.-History:...

, which disincorporated in 1972.

Australia

In Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, the unincorporated areas are places outside municipal council boundaries, usually in remote areas. Some are of vast area but tiny population. Until 30 June 2008, there were large unincorporated areas in the Northern Territory

Northern Territory

The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...

with over 9000 kilometres (5,592.4 mi) of roads in those areas with 92 percent of the territory area and 16.5 percent of its population. With the reform of local government on 1 July 2008, these shares dropped to 1.45 percent of the area and 4.0 percent of the population. The remaining unincorporated areas in the Northern Territory are the Unincorporated Top End Region (Finniss-Mary, the largest), the Darwin Rates Act Area (East Arm

East Arm

East Arm is a rock mass forming the eastern limit of Horseshoe Harbor in Holme Bay, Mac. Robertson Land. Roughly mapped by Norwegian cartographers from air photos taken by the Lars Christensen Expedition, 1936-37. Rephotographed by U.S. Navy Operation Highjump, 1946-47. First visited by an ANARE ...

), Nhulunbuy

Nhulunbuy, Northern Territory

Nhulunbuy is the name of the township created on the Gove Peninsula in the Northern Territory of Australia when a bauxite mine and deep water port were established nearby in the late 1960s...

, Alyangula in the northern region, and Yulara in the southern region.

Sixty percent of the area of South Australia

South Australia

South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...

is in the unincorporated Outback Areas Community Development Trust

Outback Areas Community Development Trust

The Outback Areas Community Development Trust is a trust in South Australia which is operated under the Outback Areas Community Development Trust Act...

. The far west and north of New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

is called the Unincorporated Far West Region

Unincorporated Far West Region

The Unincorporated Far West Region is one of two areas of New South Wales which is not part of any Local Government Area ; it is in the Far West containing small towns such as Tibooburra , Milparinka , Silverton . Silverton and Tibooburra have village councils...

, which is sparsely populated and barely warrants an elected council. A civil servant in the state capital manages such matters as are necessary. The second unincorporated area of this state is Lord Howe Island

Lord Howe Island

Lord Howe Island is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, directly east of mainland Port Macquarie, and about from Norfolk Island. The island is about 11 km long and between 2.8 km and 0.6 km wide with an area of...

.

The Australian Capital Territory

Australian Capital Territory

The Australian Capital Territory, often abbreviated ACT, is the capital territory of the Commonwealth of Australia and is the smallest self-governing internal territory...

lacks any form of local government, and so in a sense the whole territory is an unincorporated area. However, the ACT government takes on the responsibilities of a local government, and Canberra is the only sizeable community in the territory.

The other state to have unincorporated areas is Victoria

Victoria (Australia)

Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

, which has two small unincorporated areas in Alpine Shire

Alpine Shire

Alpine Shire is a Local Government Area in Victoria, Australia. It is located in the north-eastern part of the state. It includes the towns of Bright, Mount Beauty and Myrtleford. It has an area of 4,885 square kilometres. In 2001 it had a population of 17,581 and still growing. There are two...

, and one in Shire of Mansfield (all of which are ski resort

Ski resort

A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing and other winter sports. In Europe a ski resort is a town or village in a ski area - a mountainous area, where there are ski trails and supporting services such as hotels and other accommodation, restaurants, equipment rental and a ski lift system...

s), as well as some small offshore islands. The complete list is:

Elizabeth Island
Elizabeth Island (Victoria)
Elizabeth Island lies just south of French Island in Western Port, Victoria, south-eastern Australia. It is separated from French Island by intertidal mudflats and a small channel. It is in area and is an unincorporated area of Victoria...
Falls Creek Alpine Resort
Falls Creek, Victoria
Falls Creek is a ski-in, ski-out ski resort in north-eastern Victoria, Australia. It is located about 350 kilometres by road from Melbourne in the Alpine National Park, with the nearest town Mount Beauty, approximately 30 kilometres away. The resort lies between an altitude of 1,210 and 1,830...
French Island
Gabo Island
Gabo Island
Gabo Island is a 154 ha island located off the coast of eastern Victoria, Australia, between Mallacoota and Cape Howe on the border with New South Wales. It is separated from the mainland by a 500 m wide channel; access is available by arranged flights and boats...
Lady Julia Percy Island
Lake Mountain Alpine Resort
Lake Mountain
Lake Mountain is a cross-country ski resort in Victoria 90 km from Melbourne. It is the most popular ski resort in Australia in visitor numbers due to its proximity to the populous city of Melbourne, mainly from casual visitors....
Mount Baw Baw Alpine Resort
Mount Baw Baw
Mount Baw Baw is a mountain in Victoria, Australia. Mount Baw Baw Alpine Resort is an Unincorporated area of Victoria surrounded by the Shire of Baw Baw.-Location:...
Mount Buller Alpine Resort
Mount Buller, Victoria
Mount Buller is a town in Victoria, Australia east of Melbourne on the slopes of Mount Buller . Primarily a resort town, Mount Buller is popular with snowsports enthusiasts in winter due to its close location to Melbourne...
Mount Hotham Alpine Resort
Mount Hotham
Mount Hotham is a mountain in Victoria, Australia. It is home to Hotham Alpine Resort. The mountain is located approximately north east of Melbourne, from Sydney, and from Adelaide by road. Mt Hotham's summit rises to an altitude of above sea level...
Mount Stirling Alpine Resort
Mount Stirling
Mount Stirling is a cross-country and backcountry ski resort in the Australian state of Victoria approximately 230 km from Melbourne. Mount Stirling is a popular location for beginner backcountry skiers and snowboarders due to its distance from Melbourne and proximity to the Mount Buller...

Unlike the United States and some other countries, Australia only has one level of local government beneath the State's. Thus, aside from these special or very sparsely populated areas almost all of Australia will be in one local government area or another. Local government areas (LGAs) often contain many towns, townships and even cities; while many larger cities (like Melbourne and Sydney) are distributed over many local government areas. The boundary, style and even name of an incorporated area therefore do not necessarily correspond to the boundary, type or name of any settlement.

Finally, in Australia the placenames in mail addresses are the suburbs and localities

Suburbs and localities (Australia)

Suburbs and localities are the names of geographic subdivisions in Australia, mainly for address purposes. The name locality is used in rural areas, while the equivalent in urban areas are suburbs. Sometimes locality is used to refer to both localities and suburbs, and they are also called address...

which are declared by the local council, but often cross LGA boundaries. In unincorporated areas, they are declared by the relevant authority. Thus, the question of address in unincorporated areas does not arise as it does in the U.S.

Canada

In Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, depending on the province, an unincorporated settlement is one that does not have a municipal council that governs solely over the settlement. It is usually, but not always, part of a larger municipal government. This can range from small hamlets

Hamlet (place)

A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...

to large urbanized areas that are similar in size to towns and cities.

For example, the urban service areas of Fort McMurray and Sherwood Park, of the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo

Wood Buffalo, Alberta

The Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo is a specialized municipality located in northeastern Alberta. Formed as a result of the amalgamation of the City of Fort McMurray and Improvement District No. 143 on April 1, 1995, it is the second largest municipality in Alberta by area...

and Strathcona County

Strathcona County, Alberta

Strathcona County is a specialized municipality in central Alberta, Canada between Edmonton and Elk Island National Park.It is located in Division No. 11 and is also part of the Edmonton Census Metropolitan Area. More than half of the population lives in Sherwood Park, a large community east of...

respectively, would be the fifth and sixth largest cities in Alberta

Alberta

Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...

if they were incorporated.

In British Columbia, unincorporated settlements lie outside municipal boundaries entirely, and are administered directly by regional/county-level governments similar to the American system.

Unincorporated settlements with a population of between 100 and 1,000 residents may have the status of designated place

Designated place

A designated place or DPL is a type of community or populated area identified by Statistics Canada for statistical purposes. DPLs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages.DPLs are communities that lack...

in Canadian census data.

Some unincorporated settlements which are not part of a larger municipality—particularly those in very remote areas—may have some types of municipal services provided to them by a quasi-governmental agency such as a local services board.

Germany

Since Germany has no administrative level comparable to the township

Township

s of other countries, the vast majority of the country is organized in municipalities, often consisting of multiple settlements which are not considered to be unincorporated. Because these settlements lack a council of their own, there is usually an Ortsvorsteher (village president) appointed by the larger municipality, except in the very smallest villages.

, Germany had 248 uninhabited unincorporated areas (of which 214 are located in Bavaria

Bavaria

Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...

), called gemeindefreie Gebiete or singular gemeindefreies Gebiet, not belonging to any municipality, consisting mostly of forested areas. There are also three inhabited unincorporated areas, all of which serve as military proving ground

Proving ground

A proving ground is the US name for a military installation or reservation where weapons or other military technology are experimented or tested, or where military tactics are tested...

s: Osterheide

Osterheide

Osterheide is an unincorporated area in the district of Heidekreis, in Lower Saxony, Germany.The area has 815 inhabitants . Its administrative seat is the village of Oerbke; other villages are Ostenholz and Wense...

and Lohheide

Lohheide

Lohheide is an unincorporated area in the district of Celle, in Lower Saxony, Germany.It covers an area of and has 764 inhabitants...

in Lower Saxony

Lower Saxony

Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...

, and Gutsbezirk Münsingen in Baden-Württemberg

Baden-Württemberg

Baden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...

. They have fewer than 2,000 inhabitants in total. Gutsbezirk Münsingen, after losing its inhabited parts to neighboring municipalities effective January 1, 2011, is uninhabited now.

Netherlands

The Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

has had regular periods with unincorporated land when newly reclaimed land polder

Polder

A polder is a low-lying tract of land enclosed by embankments known as dikes, that forms an artificial hydrological entity, meaning it has no connection with outside water other than through manually-operated devices...

s fall dry. Unincorporated land is since medieval times administered by an appointed officer with the name Landdrost or Drossaart. Also, Elten

Elten

Elten is a small German town located in Northrhine-Westfalia. It has a population of around 4,500. Since 1975, it is part of the town Emmerich am Rhein. Between 1949 and 1963, Elten was part of the Netherlands . There is a substantial minority of Dutch citizens.- External links :*...

and Tudderen, both annexed from Germany after World War II, were governed by a Landdrost until they were ceded to Germany in 1963.

The last period with unincorporated land started in 1967 when the dyke around Southern Flevoland

Flevoland

Flevoland is a province of the Netherlands. Located in the centre of the country, at the location of the former Zuiderzee, the province was established on January 1, 1986; the twelfth province of the country, with Lelystad as its capital...

was closed. It however requires several years before the polder is genuinely accessible for cultivation and construction of roads and homes can start, as in the first years the soil is equivalent to quick sand. During the initial period of inhabitation a special, government appointed officer is installed, who is called Landdrost. During the administrative office of a Landdrost there is no municipal council.

In 1975 the first homes in what is now the city of Almere

Almere

Almere is a planned city and municipality in the province of Flevoland, the Netherlands, bordering Lelystad and Zeewolde. The municipality of Almere comprises the districts Almere Stad, Almere Haven, Almere Buiten, Almere Hout, Almere Poort and Almere Pampus .Almere is the youngest city in the...

were built and from 1976 till 1984 the area was governed by the Landdrost as the executive of the Openbaar Lichaam Zuidelijk Flevoland (Public Body Southern Flevoland). In 1984 the Landdrost became the first mayor

Mayor

In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

of the new city Almere. Since that date the Netherlands does not have any unincorporated land areas.

The Openbaar Lichaam remained however, only governing the water body of the Markermeer

Markermeer

The Markermeer is a lake in the central Netherlands in between North Holland, Flevoland and its larger sibling, the IJsselmeer. A shallow lake at some 3 to 5 m in depth, it is named after the small former island, now peninsula, of Marken that lies within it...

. After the municipal division of the Wadden Sea (1985), the territorial waters in the North Sea (1991) and the IJsselmeer (1994), also all water bodies are now part of a municipality and there are no unincorporated areas in the Netherlands anymore. The Openbaar Lichaam Zuidelijk Flevoland was dissolved in 1996.

United States

In local government in the United States

Local government in the United States

Local government in the United States is generally structured in accordance with the laws of the various individual states. Typically each state has at least two separate tiers: counties and municipalities. Some states have their counties divided into townships...

, an unincorporated area generally refers to the part of a county

County (United States)

In the United States, a county is a geographic subdivision of a state , usually assigned some governmental authority. The term "county" is used in 48 of the 50 states; Louisiana is divided into parishes and Alaska into boroughs. Parishes and boroughs are called "county-equivalents" by the U.S...

which is outside of any municipality

Municipality

. Most states have granted some form of home rule

Home Rule in the United States

In the United States, the legislative authority granted to local governments varies by state. In some states, known as Home Rule States, an amendment to the state constitution grants cities, municipalities, and/or counties the ability to pass laws to govern themselves as they see fit...

, so that county commission

County commission

A county commission is a group of elected officials charged with administering the county government in local government in some states of the United States. County commissions are usually made up of three or more individuals...

s (or boards or councils) have the same powers in these areas as city council

City council

A city council or town council is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area.-Australia & NZ:Because of the differences in legislation between the States, the exact definition of a City Council varies...

s or town council

Town council

A town council is a democratically elected form of government for small municipalities or civil parishes. A council may serve as both the representative and executive branch....

s have in their respective incorporated areas. Some states instead put these powers in the hands of township

Township

s, which are minor civil division

Minor civil division

Minor civil division is a term used by the United States Census Bureau to designate the primary governmental and/or administrative divisions of a county, such as a civil township, precinct, or magisterial district...

s of each county, and are called "towns" in some states. Some American states have no unincorporated land areas; these include Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

, New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

, Connecticut

Connecticut

Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...

, and Rhode Island

Rhode Island

The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...

although these states all have communities that are not separately incorporated but are part of a larger municipality.

An unincorporated community is one general term for a geographic area having a common social identity without benefit of municipal organization or official political designation (i.e., incorporation as a city or town). There are two main types of unincorporated communities:

a neighborhood or other community
Community
The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...

existing within one or across multiple existing incorporated areas (i.e., cities or towns). In this sense, a community is part of a municipal government, but not separately incorporated from it. For example, Hyannis, Massachusetts
Hyannis, Massachusetts
Hyannis is the largest of seven villages in Barnstable, Massachusetts. Also it is the commercial and transportation hub of Cape Cod and was designated an urban area as a result of the 1990 census. Because of this, many refer to Hyannis as the "Capital of the Cape"...

, is an unincorporated village within the town of Barnstable
Barnstable, Massachusetts
Barnstable is a city, referred to as the Town of Barnstable, in the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the county seat of Barnstable County. Barnstable is the largest community, both in land area and population, on Cape Cod. The town contains seven villages within its boundaries...

.

a neighborhood or other community existing outside of an incorporated municipal government. In this sense, the community is outside of any municipal government, and entirely unincorporated. Three examples are Nutbush, Tennessee
Nutbush, Tennessee
Nutbush is an unincorporated rural community in Haywood County, Tennessee, United States, in the western part of the state.Established in the early 19th century, Nutbush is home to two early American churches founded by white settlers, Woodlawn Baptist Church and Trinity United Methodist Church...

, Yucca, Arizona
Yucca, Arizona
Yucca is an unincorporated community in Mohave County, Arizona, United States. Located along Interstate 40, it lies southwest of Kingman, just east of the southern section of the Black Mountains and west of the Hualapai and McCracken Mountains in the Sacramento Valley. Yucca has a ZIP Code of...

, and Bena, Minnesota
Bena, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 110 people, 48 households, and 31 families residing in the city. The population density was 218.0 people per square mile . There were 72 housing units at an average density of 142.7 per square mile...

, small rural settlements of low population.

Due to differences in state laws regarding the incorporation of communities, there is a great variation in the distribution and nature of unincorporated areas. Unincorporated regions are essentially non-existent in the six New England

New England

New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...

states and New Jersey

New Jersey

. Nearly all of the land in New England (and all of the land in New Jersey) is part of an incorporated area of some type. In these areas, types (and official names) of local government entities can vary. In New England, local municipalities are known as towns

New England town

The New England town is the basic unit of local government in each of the six New England states. Without a direct counterpart in most other U.S. states, New England towns are conceptually similar to civil townships in other states, but are incorporated, possessing powers like cities in other...

, and are administered by a form of direct democracy, such as the open town meeting

Open town meeting

An open town meeting is a form of town meeting in which all registered voters of a town may vote . This form of government is typical of smaller municipalities in the New England region of the United States....

or representative town meeting

Representative town meeting

A representative town meeting is a form of municipal legislature particularly common in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Vermont....

. Larger towns in New England may be incorporated as cities, with some form of mayor-council government. In New Jersey multiple types exist as well, such as city

City (New Jersey)

A City in the context of New Jersey local government refers to one of five types and one of eleven forms of municipal government....

, township

Township (New Jersey)

A township, in the context of New Jersey local government, refers to one of five types and one of eleven forms of municipal government. As a political entity, a township is a full-fledged municipality, on par with any town, city, borough, or village, collecting property taxes and providing...

, town

Town (New Jersey)

A Town in the context of New Jersey local government refers to one of five types and one of eleven forms of municipal government...

, borough

Borough (New Jersey)

A borough in the context of New Jersey local government refers to one of five types and one of eleven forms of municipal government....

or village

Village (New Jersey)

A Village in the context of New Jersey local government, refers to one of five types and one of eleven forms of municipal government.The Village Act of 1891 defined the form of government to consist of a five-member board of trustees to be elected to three-year staggered terms. One member serves...

, but these differences are in the structure of the legislative branches, not in the powers or functions of the entities themselves.

On the opposite end of the spectrum is the Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

"strong county" model. Virginia and other states with this model, such as Alabama

Alabama

Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...

, Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

, and Tennessee

Tennessee

Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

, set strict requirements on incorporation or grant counties

County (United States)

and township

Township

s broad powers that in other states are carried out by cities, creating a disincentive to incorporate, and thus have large, urbanized areas which have no municipal government below the county or township level.

Meanwhile, in other mid-Atlantic states, such as New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

and Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

, a "hybrid" model that tries to "balance" the two approaches is prevalent, with differing allocations of power between municipalities and counties exists.

Throughout the USA, some large cities have annexed all surrounding unincorporated areas, creating what are known as consolidated city–county forms of government (e.g., Jacksonville, Florida

Jacksonville, Florida

Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...

, or Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...

). In areas of sparse population the majority of the land in any given state may be unincorporated.

Some states, including North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

and others, grant extraterritorial jurisdiction

Extraterritorial jurisdiction

Extraterritorial jurisdiction is the legal ability of a government to exercise authority beyond its normal boundaries.Any authority can, of course, claim ETJ over any external territory they wish...

to cities and towns (but rarely villages), so that they may control zoning

Zoning

Zoning is a device of land use planning used by local governments in most developed countries. The word is derived from the practice of designating permitted uses of land based on mapped zones which separate one set of land uses from another...

for a limited distance into adjacent unincorporated areas, often as a precursor (and sometimes as a legal requirement) to later annexation

Annexation

Annexation is the de jure incorporation of some territory into another geo-political entity . Usually, it is implied that the territory and population being annexed is the smaller, more peripheral, and weaker of the two merging entities, barring physical size...

of those areas. This is especially useful in rural

Rural

Rural areas or the country or countryside are areas that are not urbanized, though when large areas are described, country towns and smaller cities will be included. They have a low population density, and typically much of the land is devoted to agriculture...

counties which have no zoning at all, or only spot zoning

Spot zoning

Spot zoning is the application of zoning to a specific parcel of land within a larger zoned area when the rezoning is usually at odds with a city's master plan and current zoning restrictions. The rezoning may be for the benefit of a particular owner, and at odds with pre-existing adjacent...

for unincorporated communities.

In California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, all counties except the City and County of San Francisco have unincorporated areas. Even in highly populated counties, the unincorporated portions may contain a large number of inhabitants. In Los Angeles County

Los Angeles County, California

Los Angeles County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 9,818,605, making it the most populous county in the United States. Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states...

, the county government estimates the population of its unincorporated areas to exceed one million people. Despite having 88 incorporated cities and towns, including the state's most populous, 65% of the land in Los Angeles County is unincorporated, this mostly consisting of Angeles National Forest

Angeles National Forest

The Angeles National Forest of the U.S. National Forest Service is located in the San Gabriel Mountains of Los Angeles County, southern California. It was established on July 1, 1908, incorporating the first San Bernardino National Forest and parts of the former Santa Barbara and San Gabriel...

and sparsely populated regions to its north.

In the context of the insular area

Insular area

An insular area is a United States territory, that is neither a part of one of the fifty U.S. states nor the District of Columbia, the federal district of the United States...

s of the United States, the word "unincorporated

Unincorporated territories of the United States

Unincorporated territory is a legal term of art in United States law denoting an area controlled by the government of the United States, but which is not a part of the United States proper ....

" means that the territory has not been formally and irrevocably incorporated into the United States. (See: United States territory
United States territory
United States territory is any extent of region under the jurisdiction of the federal government of the United States, including all waters including all U.S. Naval carriers. The United States has traditionally proclaimed the sovereign rights for exploring, exploiting, conserving, and managing its...

.) Unincorporated insular areas are therefore potentially subject to being sold or otherwise transferred to another power, or, conversely, being granted independence. However, neither fate seems likely to occur in the foreseeable future to the five remaining major unincorporated U.S. insular areas: American Samoa

American Samoa

American Samoa is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the sovereign state of Samoa...

, Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...

, Guam

Guam

Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...

, the U.S. Virgin Islands

United States Virgin Islands

The Virgin Islands of the United States are a group of islands in the Caribbean that are an insular area of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located in the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles.The U.S...

, or the Northern Mariana Islands

Northern Mariana Islands

The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , is a commonwealth in political union with the United States, occupying a strategic region of the western Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines...

U.S. mail delivery

Many unincorporated communities are also recognized as acceptable place names for use in mailing addresses by the United States Postal Service

United States Postal Service

The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...

(indeed, some have their own post office

Post office

A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...

s), and the United States Census Bureau

United States Census Bureau

The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

uses the names of some unincorporated communities for its census-designated place

Census-designated place

A census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...

s (CDPs) for which it tabulates census data. The borders used by the census bureau for the CDP seldom align exactly with the borders of either the hamlet or the postal district.

However, the USPS

United States Postal Service

The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...

is very conservative about recognizing new place names for use in mailing addresses, and typically only does so when a place incorporates. The original place name associated with a ZIP code is still maintained as the "default" place name, even though the name of the newly-incorporated place is more accurate. As an example, Sandy Springs

Sandy Springs, Georgia

Sandy Springs is a city in north Georgia, United States. It is a northern suburb of Atlanta. With a 2010 population of 93,853, Sandy Springs is the sixth-largest city in the state and the second-largest city in Metro Atlanta. Sandy Springs is located in north Fulton County, Georgia, just south of...

is one of the most populated places in Georgia

Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

, but is served by a branch of the Atlanta post office. Only after the city was incorporated in 2005 has "Sandy Springs" been approved by the USPS for use in mailing addresses, though "Atlanta" remains the default name. Accordingly, "Atlanta" is the only accepted place name for mailing addresses in the nearby unincorporated town of Vinings

Vinings, Georgia

Vinings is a census-designated place and an unincorporated town in Cobb County, Georgia, just across the Chattahoochee River from Atlanta. As of the 2010 census, the town had a total population of 9,734. It is located between the affluent West Paces Ferry section of Buckhead in northwest Atlanta,...

, also served by a branch of the Atlanta post office, even though Atlanta is in a different county. In contrast, neighboring Mableton

Mableton, Georgia

Mableton is a census-designated place in Cobb County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2010 census, the CDP had a population of 37,115.It was named for Robert Mable, who in 1843 bought 300 acres of land on September 11...

has not been incorporated in nearly a century, but has its own post office and thus "Mableton" is the only acceptable place name for mailing addresses in the town.

If an unincorporated area becomes incorporated, it may be split among ZIP codes, and its new name may be recognized as "acceptable" for use with some or all of them in mailing addresses, as has been the case in Johns Creek

Johns Creek, Georgia

Johns Creek is a suburban city in Fulton County, Georgia, USA, which incorporated December 1, 2006. It is named for a tributary that runs through the area. The city was created out of the northeastern part of unincorporated Fulton County...

and Milton, Georgia

Milton, Georgia

Milton is a city in Fulton County, Georgia, United States. Incorporated on December 1, 2006, it was created out of the entire unincorporated northwestern part of northern Fulton County. It is a highly affluent community with an average household income within the zip code 30004 of $99,412...

. However, if an incorporated area disincorporates, this has no effect on whether a place name is "acceptable" in a mailing address or not, as is the case with Lithia Springs

Lithia Springs, Georgia

Lithia Springs is an unincorporated area, formerly incorporated as a city, located in northeastern Douglas County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 2,072. The city is named for its historic Lithia Springs springs.Incorporated in 1882, Lithia...

. ZIP code boundaries often ignore political boundaries, so the appearance of a place name in a mailing address alone does not indicate whether the place is incorporated or unincorporated.

Countries without unincorporated places

Many countries, especially those with many centuries of history using multiple tiers of local government, do not use the concept of an unincorporated place.

In the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

the whole of the country, rural and urban, has been covered by a two or three-tier system of local government for many centuries (although many of the larger conurbations now have single tier or unitary local governments). However, there are still unadopted roads which are usually residential cul-de-sacs that are independent to the local government.
The Spanish Constitution of 1978
Spanish Constitution of 1978
-Structure of the State:The Constitution recognizes the existence of nationalities and regions . Preliminary Title As a result, Spain is now composed entirely of 17 Autonomous Communities and two autonomous cities with varying degrees of autonomy, to the extent that, even though the Constitution...

says that the land is divided into Autonomous Communities
Autonomous communities of Spain
An autonomous community In other languages of Spain:*Catalan/Valencian .*Galician .*Basque . The second article of the constitution recognizes the rights of "nationalities and regions" to self-government and declares the "indissoluble unity of the Spanish nation".Political power in Spain is...

, provinces
Provinces of Spain
Spain and its autonomous communities are divided into fifty provinces .In other languages of Spain:*Catalan/Valencian , sing. província.*Galician , sing. provincia.*Basque |Galicia]] — are not also the capitals of provinces...

and municipalities
Municipalities of Spain
The municipalities of Spain In other languages of Spain:*Catalan/Valencian , sing. municipi.*Galician or , sing. municipio/bisbarra.*Basque , sing. udalerria. are the basic level of Spanish local government...

. Each of those entities have certain powers determined by law. Autonomous Communities and municipalities are enabled to appellate any public decision which violates their autonomy from the other entities (i.e. State or Autonomous Community power) before the Constitutional Court
Constitutional Court of Spain
thumb|300px|The [[Domenico Scarlatti]] Building located in [[Madrid]], seat of the Constitutional Court of Justice of Spain.The Constitutional Court of Spain is the highest judicial body with the power to determine the constitutionality of acts and statutes of the Spanish Government. It is...

. Nevertheless, some regions (like Navarra) have some unincorporated areas. The largest of these, the Bardenas Reales
Bardenas Reales
The Bardenas Reales is a semi-desert of some 42,000 ha in southeast Navarre . The soils are made up of clay, chalk and sandstone and have been eroded by water and wind creating surprising shapes, canyons, plateaus, tabular structures and isolated hills, called seamounts...

has a surface of 418 km² and is governed by a board with representatives of 20 bordering municipalities, a valley in the Pyrenees and a monastery, all of which have rights of use in the area.
In South Africa the latest constitution gave every place in the country democratically elected third-tier government.
Likewise the whole of the territories of Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

, France (except for some small overseas possessions), Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

(though a handful of unincorporated cities exist within ordinary municipalities), Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...

, Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...

, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

(with exceptions), Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

and Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...

(with the exception of the military areas, which are administered directly by state government) are divided into communes
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...

.

In Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

and Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

, all land must belong to a municipality. Even large uninhabited areas, such as forests or grasslands, are by law part of the nearest "city". This is because in Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...

, a "municipality" is the equivalent of what in the United States and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

is called a "County
County
A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain modern nations. Historically in mainland Europe, the original French term, comté, and its equivalents in other languages denoted a jurisdiction under the sovereignty of a count A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain...

".

In Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...

, every piece of land belongs either to a city (grad) or to a municipality (općina).

In the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

, every piece of land belongs either to a city (lungsod) or to a municipality (bayan).

In France, the territory is subdivided into 36,685 municipalities. An elected council and a mayor form the governing body of a municipality.

Australia

Canada

Germany

Netherlands

United States

U.S. mail delivery

Countries without unincorporated places

See also