Created for use by the Oklahoma City Community Foundation.

This resource is a member of a series. The TIGER/Line shapefiles and related database files (.dbf) are an extract of selected geographic and cartographic information from the U.S. Census Bureau's Master Address File / Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (MAF/TIGER) Database (MTDB). The MTDB represents a seamless national file with no overlaps or gaps between parts, however, each TIGER/Line shapefile is designed to stand alone as an independent data set, or they can be combined to cover the entire nation. The TIGER/Line shapefiles include both incorporated places (legal entities) and census designated places or CDPs (statistical entities). An incorporated place is established to provide governmental functions for a concentration of people as opposed to a minor civil division (MCD), which generally is created to provide services or administer an area without regard, necessarily, to population. Places always nest within a state, but may extend across county and county subdivision boundaries. An incorporated place usually is a city, town, village, or borough, but can have other legal descriptions. CDPs are delineated for the decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places. CDPs are delineated to provide data for settled concentrations of population that are identifiable by name, but are not legally incorporated under the laws of the state in which they are located. The boundaries for CDPs often are defined in partnership with state, local, and/or tribal officials and usually coincide with visible features or the boundary of an adjacent incorporated place or another legal entity. CDP boundaries often change from one decennial census to the next with changes in the settlement pattern and development; a CDP with the same name as in an earlier census does not necessarily have the same boundary. The only population/housing size requirement for CDPs is that they must contain some housing and population. The boundaries of most incorporated places in this shapefile are as of January 1, 2023, as reported through the Census Bureau's Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS). The boundaries of all CDPs were delineated as part of the Census Bureau's Participant Statistical Areas Program (PSAP) for the 2020 Census, but some CDPs were added or updated through the 2023 BAS as well.

NFIP participation status of Oklahoma cities cities and towns. Boundaries are based on information provided by the Oklahoma Tax Commission.

The 2023 cartographic boundary shapefiles are simplified representations of selected geographic areas from the U.S. Census Bureau's Master Address File / Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (MAF/TIGER) Database (MTDB). These boundary files are specifically designed for small-scale thematic mapping. When possible, generalization is performed with the intent to maintain the hierarchical relationships among geographies and to maintain the alignment of geographies within a file set for a given year. Geographic areas may not align with the same areas from another year. Some geographies are available as nation-based files while others are available only as state-based files. The cartographic boundary files include both incorporated places (legal entities) and census designated places or CDPs (statistical entities). An incorporated place is established to provide governmental functions for a concentration of people as opposed to a minor civil division (MCD), which generally is created to provide services or administer an area without regard, necessarily, to population. Places always nest within a state, but may extend across county and county subdivision boundaries. An incorporated place usually is a city, town, village, or borough, but can have other legal descriptions. CDPs are delineated for the decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places. CDPs are delineated to provide data for settled concentrations of population that are identifiable by name, but are not legally incorporated under the laws of the state in which they are located. The boundaries for CDPs often are defined in partnership with state, local, and/or tribal officials and usually coincide with visible features or the boundary of an adjacent incorporated place or another legal entity. CDP boundaries often change from one decennial census to the next with changes in the settlement pattern and development; a CDP with the same name as in an earlier census does not necessarily have the same boundary. The only population/housing size requirement for CDPs is that they must contain some housing and population. The generalized boundaries of most incorporated places in this file are based on those as of January 1, 2023, as reported through the Census Bureau's Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS). The generalized boundaries of all CDPs are based on those delineated or updated as part of the the 2023 BAS or the Census Bureau's Participant Statistical Areas Program (PSAP) for the 2020 Census.

The 2022 cartographic boundary KMLs are simplified representations of selected geographic areas from the U.S. Census Bureau's Master Address File / Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (MAF/TIGER) Database (MTDB). These boundary files are specifically designed for small-scale thematic mapping. When possible, generalization is performed with the intent to maintain the hierarchical relationships among geographies and to maintain the alignment of geographies within a file set for a given year. Geographic areas may not align with the same areas from another year. Some geographies are available as nation-based files while others are available only as state-based files. The cartographic boundary files include both incorporated places (legal entities) and census designated places or CDPs (statistical entities). An incorporated place is established to provide governmental functions for a concentration of people as opposed to a minor civil division (MCD), which generally is created to provide services or administer an area without regard, necessarily, to population. Places always nest within a state, but may extend across county and county subdivision boundaries. An incorporated place usually is a city, town, village, or borough, but can have other legal descriptions. CDPs are delineated for the decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places. CDPs are delineated to provide data for settled concentrations of population that are identifiable by name, but are not legally incorporated under the laws of the state in which they are located. The boundaries for CDPs often are defined in partnership with state, local, and/or tribal officials and usually coincide with visible features or the boundary of an adjacent incorporated place or another legal entity. CDP boundaries often change from one decennial census to the next with changes in the settlement pattern and development; a CDP with the same name as in an earlier census does not necessarily have the same boundary. The only population/housing size requirement for CDPs is that they must contain some housing and population. The generalized boundaries of most incorporated places in this file are based on those as of January 1, 2022, as reported through the Census Bureau's Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS). The generalized boundaries of all CDPs are based on those delineated as part of the Census Bureau's Participant Statistical Areas Program (PSAP) for the 2020 Census.

The 2023 cartographic boundary KMLs are simplified representations of selected geographic areas from the U.S. Census Bureau's Master Address File / Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (MAF/TIGER) Database (MTDB). These boundary files are specifically designed for small-scale thematic mapping. When possible, generalization is performed with the intent to maintain the hierarchical relationships among geographies and to maintain the alignment of geographies within a file set for a given year. Geographic areas may not align with the same areas from another year. Some geographies are available as nation-based files while others are available only as state-based files. The cartographic boundary files include both incorporated places (legal entities) and census designated places or CDPs (statistical entities). An incorporated place is established to provide governmental functions for a concentration of people as opposed to a minor civil division (MCD), which generally is created to provide services or administer an area without regard, necessarily, to population. Places always nest within a state, but may extend across county and county subdivision boundaries. An incorporated place usually is a city, town, village, or borough, but can have other legal descriptions. CDPs are delineated for the decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places. CDPs are delineated to provide data for settled concentrations of population that are identifiable by name, but are not legally incorporated under the laws of the state in which they are located. The boundaries for CDPs often are defined in partnership with state, local, and/or tribal officials and usually coincide with visible features or the boundary of an adjacent incorporated place or another legal entity. CDP boundaries often change from one decennial census to the next with changes in the settlement pattern and development; a CDP with the same name as in an earlier census does not necessarily have the same boundary. The only population/housing size requirement for CDPs is that they must contain some housing and population. The generalized boundaries of most incorporated places in this file are based on those as of January 1, 2023, as reported through the Census Bureau's Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS). The generalized boundaries of all CDPs are based on those delineated or updated as part of the the 2023 BAS or the Census Bureau's Participant Statistical Areas Program (PSAP) for the 2020 Census.

The 2020 cartographic boundary shapefiles are simplified representations of selected geographic areas from the U.S. Census Bureau's Master Address File / Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (MAF/TIGER) Database (MTDB). These boundary files are specifically designed for small-scale thematic mapping. When possible, generalization is performed with the intent to maintain the hierarchical relationships among geographies and to maintain the alignment of geographies within a file set for a given year. Geographic areas may not align with the same areas from another year. Some geographies are available as nation-based files while others are available only as state-based files. The cartographic boundary files include both incorporated places (legal entities) and census designated places or CDPs (statistical entities). An incorporated place is established to provide governmental functions for a concentration of people as opposed to a minor civil division (MCD), which generally is created to provide services or administer an area without regard, necessarily, to population. Places always nest within a state, but may extend across county and county subdivision boundaries. An incorporated place usually is a city, town, village, or borough, but can have other legal descriptions. CDPs are delineated for the decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places. CDPs are delineated to provide data for settled concentrations of population that are identifiable by name, but are not legally incorporated under the laws of the state in which they are located. The boundaries for CDPs often are defined in partnership with state, local, and/or tribal officials and usually coincide with visible features or the boundary of an adjacent incorporated place or another legal entity. CDP boundaries often change from one decennial census to the next with changes in the settlement pattern and development; a CDP with the same name as in an earlier census does not necessarily have the same boundary. The only population/housing size requirement for CDPs is that they must contain some housing and population. The generalized boundaries of most incorporated places in this file are based on those as of January 1, 2020, as reported through the Census Bureau's Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS). The generalized boundaries of all CDPs based on those delineated as part of the Census Bureau's Participant Statistical Areas Program (PSAP) for the 2020 Census.

This is an ESRI shapefile of State-wide municipal ward boundaries for the State of Oklahoma. Boundaries are based on information provided by the Oklahoma Tax Commission and Oklahoma County Election Boards. This State-wide shape file is created by merging the individual municipal ward boundary shapefiles for any municipalites in the State which vote by ward.

The Canadian County Parcel Data Public View is a set of geospatial features representing the surface ownership of property in fee simple for property tax purposes as required by 68 O.S. § 2821 and other related data used to produce the parcels such as subdivision boundaries and subdivision lots. The data is created from source documentation filed with the Canadian County Clerk's Office including deeds, easements, and plats. Other data sources such as filed Certified Corner Records filed with the State of Oklahoma or highway plans produced by the Department of Transportation may be used to adjust parcel boundaries. Single legal descriptions may be split up into two or more parcels if the description crosses the boundaries of multiple taxing jurisdictions or crosses quarter section boundaries. Accuracy of parcel data can vary considerably due to a combination of factors. Most parcels and subdivision legal descriptions reference a quarter section or quarter section corner. The accuracy of the quarter section corners is discussed with Canadian County's Public Land Survey System Data. Accuracy is further enhanced or degraded by the quality of the legal description used to create the feature. Generally, legal descriptions created from surveys will have higher accuracy the newer they were created due to improvements in the field of surveying. However, it can be difficult to determine the age of a legal description as descriptions are generally reused on subsequent deeds after the description was first created. Legal descriptions can occasionally contain updated bearings and distances and may denote the updates. The Assessor's Office uses the latest available legal description for creating parcels. Legal descriptions may lack specificity such as the use of "North" instead of a measured bearing or have missing parameters such as missing bearings for curved boundaries. In these cases, parcel data accuracy can be degraded. Further, if a legal description contains a specific landmark or boundary, sometimes called a "bound", the boundary is drawn to that point or landmark regardless of whether the bearing and/or distance accurately arrive at that point. For instance, if a legal description reads "...to the south line of the southeast quarter", the boundary is drawn to the south line of the quarter section even if the bearing and distance are short of or extend beyond that point. Because parcel data must be created for the entire county regardless of the accuracy of the descriptions used to create those parcels, parcels may need to be "stretched" or "squeezed" to make them fit together. When possible, the Assessor's Office relies on the most accurate legal descriptions to set the boundaries and then fits older boundaries to them. Due to the large number of variables, parcel data accuracy cannot be guaranteed nor can the level of accuracy be described for the entire dataset. While Canadian County makes every reasonable effort to make sure parcel data is accurate, this data cannot be used in place of a survey performed by an Oklahoma Licensed Professional Land Surveyor.ParcelDataExternal - Polygons representing surface fee simple title. This parcel data formatted and prepared for public use. Some fields may be blank to comply with 22 O.S. § 60.14 & 68 O.S. § 2899.1Attributes:Account (account): The unique identifier for parcel data generated by the appraisal software used by the Assessor's Office"A" Number (a_number): An integer assigned in approximate chronological order to represent each parcel divided per quarter sectionParcel ID (parcel_id): Number used to identify parcels geographically, see Parcel Data Export Appendix A for an in-depth explanation. This identifier is not unique for all parcelsParcel Size (parcel_size): Size of the parcels, must be used in conjunction with following units fieldParcel Size Units (parcel_size_units): Units for the size of the parcel. Can be "Acres" or "Lots" for parcels within subdivisions that are valued per lotOwner's Name (owners_name): Name of the surface owner of the property in fee simple on recordMailing Information (mail_info): Extra space for the owners name if needed or trustee namesMailing Information 2 (mail_info2): Forwarded mail or "In care of" mailing informationMailing Address (mail_address): Mailing address for the owner or forwarding mailing addressMailing City (mail_city): Mailing or postal cityMailing State (mail_state): Mailing state abbreviated to standard United States Postal Service codesMailing ZIP Code (mail_zip): Mailing ZIP code as determined by the United States Postal ServiceTax Area Code (tax_area): Integer numeric code representing an area in which all the taxing jurisdictions are the same. See Parcel Data Appendix B for a more detailed description of each tax areaTax Area Description (tax_area_desc): Character string code representing the tax area. See Parcel Data Appendix B for a more detailed description of each tax areaProperty Class (prop_class): The Assessor's Office classification of each parcel by rural (no city taxes) or urban (subject to city taxes) and exempt, residential, commercial, or agriculture. This classification system is for property appraisal purposes and does not reflect zoning classifications in use by municipalities. See Parcel Data Appendix B for a more detailed description of each property classificationLegal Description (legal): A highly abbreviated version of the legal description for each parcel. This legal description may not match the most recent legal description for any given property due to administrative divisions as described above, or changes made to the property by way of recorded instruments dividing smaller parcels from the original description. This description may NOT be used in place of a true legal descriptionSubdivision Code (subdiv_code): A numeric code representing a recorded subdivision plat which contains the parcel. This value will be "0" for any parcel not part of a recorded subdivision plat.Subdivision Name (subdiv_name): The name of the recorded subdivision plat abbreviated as needed to adapt to appraisal software field limitationsSubdivision Block Number (subdiv_block): Numeric field representing the block number of a parcel. This value will be "0" if the parcel is not in a recorded subdivision plat or if the plat did not contain block numbersSubdivision Lot Number (subdiv_lot): Numeric field representing the lot number of a parcel. This value will be "0" if the parcel is not in a recorded subdivision platTownship Number (township): Numeric field representing the Public Land Survey System tier or township the parcel is located in. All townships or tiers in Canadian County are north of the base line of the Indian Meridian.Range Number (range): Numeric field representing the Public Land Survey System range the parcel is located in. All Ranges in Canadian County are west of the Indian MeridianSection Number (section): Numeric field representing the Public Land Survey System section number the parcel is located inQuarter Section Code (quarter_sec): Numeric field with a code representing the quarter section a majority of the parcel is located in, 1 = Northeast Quarter, 2 = Northwest Quarter, 3 = Southwest Quarter, 4 = Southeast QuarterSitus Address (situs): Address of the property itself if it is knownSitus City (situs_city): Name of the city the parcel is actually located in (regardless of the postal city) or "Unincorporated" if the parcel is outside any incorporated city limitsSitus ZIP Code (situs_zip): ZIP Code as determined by the United States Postal Service for the property itself if it is knownLand Value (land_val): Appraised value of the land encompassed by the parcel as determined by the Assessor's OfficeImprovement Value (impr_val): Appraised value of the improvements (house, commercial building, etc.) on the property as determined by the Assessor's OfficeManufactured Home Value (mh_val): Appraised value of any manufactured homes on the property and owned by the same owner of the land as determined by the Assessor's OfficeTotal Value (total_val): Total appraised value for the property as determined by the Assessor's OfficeTotal Capped Value (cap_val): The capped value as required by Article X, Section 8B of the Oklahoma ConstitutionTotal Assessed Value (total_assess): The capped value multiplied by the assessment ratio of Canadian County, which is 12% of the capped valueHomestead Exempt Amount (hs_ex_amount): The amount exempt from the assessed value if a homestead exemption is in placeOther Exempt Value (other_ex_amount): The amount exempt from the assessed value if other exemptions are in placeTaxable Value (taxable_val): The amount taxes are calculated on which is the total assessed value minus all exemptionsSubdivisions - Polygons representing a plat or subdivision filed with the County Clerk of Canadian County. Subdivision boundaries may be revised by vacations of the plat or subdivision or by replatting a portion or all of a subdivision. Therefore, subdivision boundaries may not match the boundaries as shown on the originally filed plat.Attributes:Subdivision Name (subdivision_name): The name of the plat or subdivisionSubdivision Number (subdivision_number): An ID for each subdivision created as a portion of the parcel ID discussed in Parcel Data Export Appendix APlat Book Number (book): The book number for the recorded documentPlat Book Page Number (page): The page number for the recorded documentRecorded Acres (acres): The number of acres within the subdivision if knownRecorded Date (recorded_date): The date the document creating the subdivision was recordedDocument URL (clerk_url): URL to download a copy of the document recorded by the Canadian County Clerk's OfficeBlocks - Polygons derived from subdivision lots representing the blocks

City Boundary

Council ward boundaries for the cities of Bethany, Del City, Edmond, Midwest City, Moore, Mustang, Nichols Hills, Norman, Oklahoma City, The Village, Warr Acres, and Yukon

This data set consists of digitized aquifer boundaries for the Elk City aquifer in western Oklahoma. The aquifer covers an area of approximately 193,000 acres and supplies ground water for irrigation, domestic, and industrial purposes in Beckham, Custer, Roger Mills, and Washita Counties along the divide between the Washita and Red River basins. The Elk City aquifer consists of the Elk City Sandstone and overlying terrace deposits, made up of clay, silt, sand and gravel, and dune sands in the eastern part and sand and gravel of the Ogallala Formation (or High Plains aquifer) in the western part of the aquifer. The Elk City aquifer is unconfined and composed of very friable sandstone, lightly cemented with clay, calcite, gypsum, or iron oxide. Most of the grains are fine-sized quartz but the grain size ranges from clay to cobble in the aquifer. The Doxey Shale underlies the Elk City aquifer and acts as a confining unit, restricting the downward movement of ground water. The aquifer boundaries were digitized from a photocopy of a paper map from a ground-water modeling thesis of Elk City aquifer published at a scale of 1:63,360.

The TIGER/Line shapefiles and related database files (.dbf) are an extract of selected geographic and cartographic information from the U.S. Census Bureau's Master Address File / Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (MAF/TIGER) Database (MTDB). The MTDB represents a seamless national file with no overlaps or gaps between parts, however, each TIGER/Line shapefile is designed to stand alone as an independent data set, or they can be combined to cover the entire nation. The TIGER/Line shapefiles include both incorporated places (legal entities) and census designated places or CDPs (statistical entities). An incorporated place is established to provide governmental functions for a concentration of people as opposed to a minor civil division (MCD), which generally is created to provide services or administer an area without regard, necessarily, to population. Places always nest within a state, but may extend across county and county subdivision boundaries. An incorporated place usually is a city, town, village, or borough, but can have other legal descriptions. CDPs are delineated for the decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places. CDPs are delineated to provide data for settled concentrations of population that are identifiable by name, but are not legally incorporated under the laws of the state in which they are located. The boundaries for CDPs often are defined in partnership with state, local, and/or tribal officials and usually coincide with visible features or the boundary of an adjacent incorporated place or another legal entity. CDP boundaries often change from one decennial census to the next with changes in the settlement pattern and development; a CDP with the same name as in an earlier census does not necessarily have the same boundary. The only population/housing size requirement for CDPs is that they must contain some housing and population. The boundaries of most incorporated places in this shapefile are as of January 1, 2021, as reported through the Census Bureau's Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS). The boundaries of all CDPs were delineated as part of the Census Bureau's Participant Statistical Areas Program (PSAP) for the 2020 Census.

Garber-Wellington - Groundwater Wells with Maximum Trace Metal Concentrations

Assessment of Distribution of Arsenic, Chromium, Selenium and Uranium in Groundwater in the Garber-Wellington Aquifer - Central Oklahoma.The Garber Wellington Aquifer (GWA) in central Oklahoma is a major bedrock aquifer comprised of interbedded sandstone, shale and mudstone that yields significant quantities of water for municipal, industrial, agriculture and domestic beneficial uses. This aquifer also is characterized by locally elevated naturally occurring levels of arsenic, chromium, selenium and uranium. The aquifer underlies parts or all of Cleveland, Lincoln, Logan, Oklahoma and Pottawatomie counties, and these major cities: Oklahoma City, Edmond, Del City, Guthrie, Midwest City, Moore, Nichols Hills, and Norman. These communities, and industries (such as Tinker Air Force Base) and businesses within their confines rely wholly or partly on the aquifer for water supply. In addition, domestic wells supply drinking water to thousands of individuals where public water supply distribution systems do not exist. Unlike public water supply entities that regularly have their municipal water tested and are required to provide water to their customers that meets the Environmental Protection Agency's mandated maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) for these constituents, domestic supply wells are not required to be regularly tested and many homeowners or prospective homeowners relying on water from domestic wells may be completely in the dark to the potential of drinking water with elevated levels of these constituents. The purpose of this project is to provide public access to increase awareness of water quality indicator information of these trace metals. The project indicator information to be disseminated to the public constitutes historical laboratory analytical records "data mined" from water agency data bases matched with their sampled water well locations. It is not the purpose or intent of this report to describe or interpret the results of these analytical results per se.A significant amount of scientific research of this aquifer has been conducted by the United States Geological Survey (USGS), et al. Many scientific publications available online and in print describe in great detail the causative factors for the presence of these naturally occurring trace elements in the aquifer, locally, at elevated levels that exceed EPA’s MCLs for public water supplies. The primary objective of this dataset is to disseminate information about groundwater quality trace metal occurrence (arsenic, chromium, selenium and uranium) in the Garber-Wellington to enhance public access and increase awareness to the potential of exposure to these naturally occurring elements in water wells. Historical, laboratory analytical data for samples collected from water wells across the Garber-Wellington Aquifer were obtained from the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ), United States Geological Survey (USGS) and the Association of Central Oklahoma Governments (ACOG). Water well metals data that could be associated with a unique earth coordinate (latitude/longitude) were used to create the dataset. Through data review and reduction of the original data sets received, it was determined that 1,835 project wells could be associated with a unique earth coordinate and contained an analytical report for at least one of the 4 primary project metals. For these 1,835 project wells, there are over 4,300 associated laboratory analytical results. *It is important to note that many of the well locations were derived from address locations and legal descriptions, not actual GPS locations. Therefore, this dataset is not intended to be used for site specific applications or matching wells to properties. Due to the variation of well depths, screened zones of wells, and formation variations in the Garber-Wellington aquifer, this dataset should not be used for interpolating values between wells.The attribute table contains information regarding the source collection agency and the historical maximum concentration level sampled for each metal. Additional fields contain the following three categories for laboratory analytical levels of reporting: (3) Metals data with a concentration that exceeds the maximum contaminant level (MCL); (2) Metals data with a concentration that is less than the MCL (1); Metals data with a concentration that was reported as less than the laboratory detection limit (0) A fourth classification was created to indicate that the well was not sampled for a particular metal. Note: The MCLs of Arsenic, Chromium, Selenium and Uranium are 10, 100, 50, and 30 micrograms/liter respectively.This project was funded through the 2009 604(b) Water Quality Management Program and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The OWRB would like to thank the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ), the Association of Central Oklahoma Governments (ACOG), and the United States Geological Survey (USGS) for contributing data for this project.

This layer tracks zoning ordinances in the City of Norman. The layer was developed in 1992, using a hard copy wall map maintained by the Planning Department. It has been continually updated since that time using the zoning ordinances adopted by the City of Norman’s City Council.Link to Norman Zoning Ordinance

The 2015 cartographic boundary KMLs are simplified representations of selected geographic areas from the U.S. Census Bureau's Master Address File / Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (MAF/TIGER) Database (MTDB). These boundary files are specifically designed for small-scale thematic mapping. When possible, generalization is performed with the intent to maintain the hierarchical relationships among geographies and to maintain the alignment of geographies within a file set for a given year. Geographic areas may not align with the same areas from another year. Some geographies are available as nation-based files while others are available only as state-based files. The records in this file allow users to map the parts of Urban Areas that overlap a particular county. After each decennial census, the Census Bureau delineates urban areas that represent densely developed territory, encompassing residential, commercial, and other nonresidential urban land uses. In general, this territory consists of areas of high population density and urban land use resulting in a representation of the "urban footprint." There are two types of urban areas: urbanized areas (UAs) that contain 50,000 or more people and urban clusters (UCs) that contain at least 2,500 people, but fewer than 50,000 people (except in the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam which each contain urban clusters with populations greater than 50,000). Each urban area is identified by a 5-character numeric census code that may contain leading zeroes. The primary legal divisions of most states are termed counties. In Louisiana, these divisions are known as parishes. In Alaska, which has no counties, the equivalent entities are the organized boroughs, city and boroughs, municipalities, and for the unorganized area, census areas. The latter are delineated cooperatively for statistical purposes by the State of Alaska and the Census Bureau. In four states (Maryland, Missouri, Nevada, and Virginia), there are one or more incorporated places that are independent of any county organization and thus constitute primary divisions of their states. These incorporated places are known as independent cities and are treated as equivalent entities for purposes of data presentation. The District of Columbia and Guam have no primary divisions, and each area is considered an equivalent entity for purposes of data presentation. The Census Bureau treats the following entities as equivalents of counties for purposes of data presentation: Municipios in Puerto Rico, Districts and Islands in American Samoa, Municipalities in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Islands in the U.S. Virgin Islands. The entire area of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Island Areas is covered by counties or equivalent entities. The boundaries for counties and equivalent entities are as of January 1, 2010.

The 2019 cartographic boundary shapefiles are simplified representations of selected geographic areas from the U.S. Census Bureau's Master Address File / Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (MAF/TIGER) Database (MTDB). These boundary files are specifically designed for small-scale thematic mapping. When possible, generalization is performed with the intent to maintain the hierarchical relationships among geographies and to maintain the alignment of geographies within a file set for a given year. Geographic areas may not align with the same areas from another year. Some geographies are available as nation-based files while others are available only as state-based files. The cartographic boundary files include both incorporated places (legal entities) and census designated places or CDPs (statistical entities). An incorporated place is established to provide governmental functions for a concentration of people as opposed to a minor civil division (MCD), which generally is created to provide services or administer an area without regard, necessarily, to population. Places always nest within a state, but may extend across county and county subdivision boundaries. An incorporated place usually is a city, town, village, or borough, but can have other legal descriptions. CDPs are delineated for the decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places. CDPs are delineated to provide data for settled concentrations of population that are identifiable by name, but are not legally incorporated under the laws of the state in which they are located. The boundaries for CDPs often are defined in partnership with state, local, and/or tribal officials and usually coincide with visible features or the boundary of an adjacent incorporated place or another legal entity. CDP boundaries often change from one decennial census to the next with changes in the settlement pattern and development; a CDP with the same name as in an earlier census does not necessarily have the same boundary. The only population/housing size requirement for CDPs is that they must contain some housing and population. The boundaries of most incorporated places in this file are as of January 1, 2019, as reported through the Census Bureau's Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS). The boundaries of all CDPs were delineated as part of the Census Bureau's Participant Statistical Areas Program (PSAP) for the 2010 Census.

The TIGER/Line shapefiles and related database files (.dbf) are an extract of selected geographic and cartographic information from the U.S. Census Bureau's Master Address File / Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (MAF/TIGER) Database (MTDB). The MTDB represents a seamless national file with no overlaps or gaps between parts, however, each TIGER/Line shapefile is designed to stand alone as an independent data set, or they can be combined to cover the entire nation. Census Blocks are statistical areas bounded on all sides by visible features, such as streets, roads, streams, and railroad tracks, and/or by nonvisible boundaries such as city, town, township, and county limits, and short line-of-sight extensions of streets and roads. Census blocks are relatively small in area; for example, a block in a city bounded by streets. However, census blocks in remote areas are often large and irregular and may even be many square miles in area. A common misunderstanding is that data users think census blocks are used geographically to build all other census geographic areas, rather all other census geographic areas are updated and then used as the primary constraints, along with roads and water features, to delineate the tabulation blocks. As a result, all 2010 Census blocks nest within every other 2010 Census geographic area, so that Census Bureau statistical data can be tabulated at the block level and aggregated up to the appropriate geographic areas. Census blocks cover all territory in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Island Areas (American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands). Blocks are the smallest geographic areas for which the Census Bureau publishes data from the decennial census. A block may consist of one or more faces.

The TIGER/Line shapefiles and related database files (.dbf) are an extract of selected geographic and cartographic information from the U.S. Census Bureau's Master Address File / Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (MAF/TIGER) Database (MTDB). The MTDB represents a seamless national file with no overlaps or gaps between parts, however, each TIGER/Line shapefile is designed to stand alone as an independent data set, or they can be combined to cover the entire nation. The TIGER/Line shapefiles include both incorporated places (legal entities) and census designated places or CDPs (statistical entities). An incorporated place is established to provide governmental functions for a concentration of people as opposed to a minor civil division (MCD), which generally is created to provide services or administer an area without regard, necessarily, to population. Places always nest within a state, but may extend across county and county subdivision boundaries. An incorporated place usually is a city, town, village, or borough, but can have other legal descriptions. CDPs are delineated for the decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places. CDPs are delineated to provide data for settled concentrations of population that are identifiable by name, but are not legally incorporated under the laws of the state in which they are located. The boundaries for CDPs often are defined in partnership with state, local, and/or tribal officials and usually coincide with visible features or the boundary of an adjacent incorporated place or another legal entity. CDP boundaries often change from one decennial census to the next with changes in the settlement pattern and development; a CDP with the same name as in an earlier census does not necessarily have the same boundary. The only population/housing size requirement for CDPs is that they must contain some housing and population. The boundaries of most incorporated places in this shapefile are as of January 1, 2013, as reported through the Census Bureau's Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS). Limited updates that occurred after January 1, 2013, such as newly incorporated places, are also included. The boundaries of all CDPs were delineated as part of the Census Bureau's Participant Statistical Areas Program (PSAP) for the 2010 Census.