Center of Population Moves West and South Again in U.S. and Md., But Not on Eastern Shore

Jan Plotczyk • December 14, 2021

The Center of Population is a balance point. Pretending that each person in the U.S. weighs the same, and that geographic features on the U.S. map are ironed flat, the COP is that point where the map balances perfectly on the point of a sharpened pencil.

Every 10 years, as part of the release of the decennial census data, the U.S. Census Bureau announces the new Center of Population (COP) of the U.S., the states, and the counties.

As the population shifts, so does the COP. In 1790, the first census, Kent County, Md., was the center of population. Since then, the center has marched westward to correspond with the movement of people.

For 2020, the COP is in Hartville, Mo., 885.9 miles from Kent County. It is located at 37.415725 N, 92.346525 W, the most western and southern center of population point in the country’s history.

The Maryland COP is on the western shore at Savage, in what looks like an industrial park. It moved 655 yards since 2010, reflecting continuing population movement to the Washington, D.C., suburbs.

The Census Bureau determines the COP for each county as well. And while the state and country are marching southwestward, the Eastern Shore counties are not, with the exception of Queen Anne’s. Because of development and population shifts within each county, the direction of movement of the COP varies. The COP has shifted roughly to the northeast in Cecil, Wicomico, and Worcester; to the east in Somerset; to the southeast in Caroline and Kent; to the south in Talbot; and to the northwest in Dorchester, as shown in the following maps.

For more information, a better look at the maps, and an interactive tool where you can choose to view other states and counties, visit the Census Department’s Center of Population website.

Jan Plotczyk spent 25 years as a survey and education statistician with the federal government, at the Census Bureau and the National Center for Education Statistics. She retired to Rock Hall.

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