Population Center Marker

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Lorentz in Upshur County, West Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Population Center

By J. J. Prats, July 15, 2008

1. Population Center Marker

Inscription. The population center of the United States was in present West Virginia four times as it moved westward across the nation: near Wardensville in 1820; at Smoke Hole in 1830; west of Buckhannon in 1840; near Burning Springs in 1850.

Location. 39° 0.642′ N, 80° 18.117′ W. Marker is in Lorentz, West Virginia, in Upshur County. Marker is at the intersection of U.S. 33 and County Highway 5/1, on the right when traveling west on U.S. 33. Click for map. Marker is in this post office area: Lorentz WV 26229, United States of America.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 9 miles of this marker, as the crow flies. Lorentz (approx. 0.3 miles away); The Bassel House (approx. 2.7 miles away); The History Center (approx. 3.9 miles away); Buckhannon / Frontier Days (approx. 4 miles away); Destruction at the Courthouse (approx. 4 miles away); McClellan's Buckhannon Camp (approx. 4.2 miles away); Jenkins in Buckhannon (approx. 4.6 miles away); Louis Bennett Library (approx. 9 miles away).

Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker.

By J. J. Prats, July 15, 2008

2. Population Center Marker

Also see . . . Centers of Population. If the United States map were perfectly balanced on a point, this point would be its physical centroid. Currently this point is located in Phelps County, Missouri, in the east-central part of the state. However, when Washington, D.C. was chosen as the federal capital of the United States in 1790, the center of the U.S. population was in Kent County, Maryland, a mere 47 miles (76 km) east-northeast of the new capital. Over the last two centuries, the mean center of United States population has progressed westward and, since 1930, southwesterly, reflecting population drift. (Submitted on December 14, 2008.)

Mean Center of Population for the United States Photo, Click for full size

By the Geography Division, U.S. Census Bureau, 2001

3. Mean Center of Population for the United States

Click on image to enlarge. This map shows county boundaries.

Credits. This page originally submitted on December 14, 2008, by J. J. Prats of Springfield, Virginia. This page has been viewed 539 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on December 14, 2008, by J. J. Prats of Springfield, Virginia.