science

Geographic center of the United States

Geographic center of the United States is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Geographic center of the United States rather than just read about it. In short: The geographic center of the United States is a point approximately 20 miles (32 km) north of Belle Fourche, South Dakota at 44°58′2.08″N 103°46′17.60″W. It has been regarded as such by the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey and the U.S.

Key takeaways

Geographic center of the United States belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Geographic center of the United States to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Geographic center of the United States from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The geographic center of the United States is a point approximately 20 miles (32 km) north of Belle Fourche, South Dakota at 44°58′2.08″N 103°46′17.60″W. It has been regarded as such by the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey and the U.S. National Geodetic Survey (NGS) since the additions of Alaska and Hawaii to the United States in 1959.

Overview

This is distinct from the contiguous geographic center, which has not changed since the 1912 admissions of New Mexico and Arizona to the 48 contiguous United States, and falls near the town of Lebanon, Kansas. This served as the overall geographic center of the United States for 47 years, until the 1959 admissions of Alaska and Hawaii moved the geographic center of the overall United States approximately 550 miles (885 km) northwest by north. While any measurement of the exact center of a land mass will always be imprecise due to changing shorelines and other factors, the NGS coordinates identify the center of the fifty states as an uninhabited parcel of private pastureland approximately 12 miles (19 km) east of the cornerpoint where the South Dakota–Wyoming–Montana borders meet. 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." For public commemoration, a nearby proxy marker is located in a park in Belle Fourche, where one will find a flag atop a small concrete slab bearing a United States Coast and Geodetic Survey Reference Marker.

Contiguous United States

The geographic center of the 48 contiguous or conterminous United States, determined in a 1918 survey, is located at 39°50′N 98°35′W, about 2.6 miles (4.2 km) northwest of the center of Lebanon, Kansas, approximately 12 miles (19 km) south of the Kansas–Nebraska border. The determination is accurate to about 20 miles (32 km). The NGS coordinates are recognized in a historical marker in a small park at the intersection of AA Road and K-191, although again, this will always be slightly off due changing shorelines and other factors. It is accessible by a turn-off from U.S. Route 281. It is distinct from the geographic center of the 50 United States located at a point northeast of Belle Fourche, South Dakota, reflecting the 1959 additions of the states of Alaska and Hawaii. In a technical glitch, a farmstead northeast of Potwin, Kansas, became the default geolocation of 600 million IP addresses (due to a lack of fine granularity) when the Massachusetts-based digital mapping company MaxMind changed the putative geographic center of the contiguous United States from 39°50′N 98°35′W to 38°N 97°W.

Marker In order to protect the privacy of the private land owner where the point identified by the 1918 survey falls, a proxy marker was erected in 1940 about half a mile (800 m) away, at the 130/AA intersection (39.8282°N 98.5796°W / 39.8282; -98.5796 (Center of the United States, Proxy Marker)). Its inscription reads:

The GEOGRAPHIC CENTER of the UNITED STATES LAT. 39°50' LONG. −98°35' NE 1/4 – SE 1/4 – S32 – T2S – R11W Located by L.T. Hagadorn of Paulette & Wilson – Engineers and L.A. Beardslee – County Engineer. From data furnished by United States Coast and Geodetic Survey. Sponsored by Lebanon Hub Club. Lebanon, Kansas. April 25, 1940

An American flag usually flies atop a pole placed on the monument. A covered picnic area and the U.S. Center Chapel, a small eight-pew chapel, are nearby.

Method of measurement In 1918, the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey found this location by balancing on a point a cardboard cutout shaped like the U.S. This method was accurate to within 20 miles (32 km), but while the Geodetic Survey no longer endorses any location as the center of the U.S., the identification of Lebanon, Kansas, has remained.

Cultural references The geographic center of the contiguous United States is mentioned in Neil Gaiman's American Gods as a neutral ground where the modern and the old gods can meet despite the war between them. In the 1969 Disney movie The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes, the final question of the college knowledge program is, "A small Midwest city is located exactly on an area designated as the 'geographic center of the United States.' For ten points and $100,000, can you tell us the name of that city?" The answer of Lebanon, Kansas is accepted as correct. A 2021 Jeep Super Bowl commercial titled "The Middle", starring Bruce Springsteen, features the U.S. Center Chapel in Lebanon, Kansas. Belle Fourche, South Dakota, is referenced as the geographic center of the U.S. in "A Serpent's Tooth: A Longmire Mystery Book 9" by Craig Johnson. The television show Supernatural's bunker is located in Lebanon, KS.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Geographic center of the United States

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Geographic center of the United States claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Geographic center of the United States before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Geographic center of the United States ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Geographic center of the United States

In research: Geographic center of the United States appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Geographic center of the United States in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Geographic center of the United States is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1918 establishments in Kansas, Central United States, Geographical centres, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Geographic center of the United States outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Geographic center of the United States in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Geographic center of the United States means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Geographic center of the United States out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Geographic center of the United States in simple terms?

Why does Geographic center of the United States matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Geographic center of the United States?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Geographic center of the United States.