This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

KSNF/KODE — The U.S. Census Bureau announced today (9/20) that the nation’s new center of population in 2020 is Hartville, Missouri, a small town located in the Ozark Mountains.

The tip of a tripod resting on the center of the 2020 Center of Population Commemorative Survey mark, as part of a GPS survey to determine the precise latitude, longitude, and height of the mark in Hartville, MO (Credit: Brian Ward, NOAA).

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will honor the spot with a permanent commemorative survey mark, and the people of Hartville will celebrate this new reference point by having a party to show off the “center” of America.

The center of population is a point where an imaginary, flat, weightless, and rigid map of the United States would balance perfectly if everyone were of identical weight.

This is the fifth time in a row that the center of population has fallen in Missouri.

Recording population numbers and how people move over time helps with the distribution of congressional districts and planning for the allocation of government resources and infrastructure needs.

To commemorate the marking of a new center of U.S. population, a celebration is planned for Wednesday, September 21th in Hartville.

This event will include remarks from local, state, and federal leaders as well as musical performances from Aaron McDaris, banjo player and member of Grammy Award-winning band Rhonda Vincent and The Rage, and singer Cheryl Brown who will lead the Hartville High School Choir.

According to Wikipedia, Hartville is located in Wright County, Missouri, and is also the county seat.

The small town is a one-hour drive, east of Springfield, Missouri.

As of the 2020 Census, the population of Hartville is 594, and has a total area of 0.66 square miles.

Source: US Census Bureau, 1790-2020 Censuses, Centers of Population