What is the Center of Population?
If the United States map was a scale and every person had equal weight, the center of population is the place where the scale would balance. In other words, the center of population is the average location of where people in the United States currently live.
Based on data from the 2020 Census, the current center of the population is near Hartville, Missouri.
The first center of population, based on the 1790 census, was located in Chestertown, Maryland. Since then, the center of population has moved west and south.
Webpage and Maps
Centers of Population Webpage
Centers of Population Time Series
Historical State Centers of Population by Year for 1880 – 2020 Censuses
National Centers of Population for the 1790 – 2020 Censuses
Historical State Centers of Population by State for the 1880 – 2020 Censuses
Census Bureau Announces Hartville, Missouri, as “Center of Population” for the United States
El centro de la población del país está cerca de Hartville, un pueblo de unos 600 habitantes en Misuri sudcentral
Tip Sheet Number 22 – November 5 (See information on 2020 Center of Population release)
State Centers of Population (COP) Movement[<1.0 MB]
Key Historical Events in Our Nation and Their Impacts to the Center of Population[2.0 MB]
National Ocean Service: Marking Our Nation's Center of Population (09/08/22)
NOAA and U.S. Census Bureau to celebrate the new U.S. Center of Population
Video and Visualizations
Center of Population Video
Centers of Population interactive visualization
America Counts
Will the Nation’s Center of Population Stay in Missouri for a Fifth Decade?
The “Hart” of the Nation’s Population: Hartville, Missouri (Pop. 594)
Fast Facts
37.415725 N, 92.346525 W
Coordinates (latitude, longitude) in decimal degrees of the 2020 Center of Population and the most western and southern center of population point in our nation's history.
14.6
Distance in miles from the center of population coordinates to Hartville, Missouri, the nearest incorporated municipality and nearest place for which the Census Bureau provides data.
594
The 2020 Census population of Hartville, Missouri.
18,188
The 2020 Census population of Wright County, Missouri, where the city of Hartville and the true center of population is located.
5
Number of times the center of population has been in Missouri: 1980-2020.
11.8
Distance in miles from the 2010 center of population, near Plato, Missouri, to the 2020 center of population, near Hartville, Missouri. This is the shortest distance the center of population has moved since 1920 (the center moved just under 10 miles between 1910 and 1920) and the second shortest distance to have ever moved since 1790.
885.9
Distance in miles from 1790 center of population near Chestertown, Maryland, to the 2020 center of population near Hartville, Missouri.
Recognition Event
Press Release | November 16, 2021
Census Bureau Announces Hartville, Missouri, as “Center of Population” for the United States
The U.S. Census Bureau has calculated the center of population for the United States based on the 2020 Census population of 331.4 million.
The event to recognize Hartville, Missouri, as the center of population of the United States is scheduled on Wednesday, September 21 at 4:30 pm Central Time at the Hartville City Park, Steele Bluff Rd, Hartville, MO. The event is free and open to the public and will include an on-site unveiling of a commemorative survey monument. (*Updated Sept. 9, 2022)
Original source can be found here.
