103:
bulk of GNIS entries do not clearly distinguish between locale-type features and cities/towns/villages/hamlets, many of these were incorrectly transcribed as "populated places", a label that is supposed to apply to "... a named community with a permanent human population, usually not incorporated and with no legal boundaries, ranging from rural clustered buildings to large cities and every size in between." That's right: Many of our "populated place" articles are only labelled as such because an employee poring over a map missed a subtle difference in typeface.
174:
mountains, lakes and ponds or rivers and creeks. As editors we need to be aware of the purpose and shortcomings of GNIS, using it as a resource where it excels (name and coordinates) while relying on other sources for notability and feature type. After all, our research and editorial discretion is what distinguishes
Knowledge (XXG) from machine-generated gazeteers such as
161:
were sometimes misread and sometimes bore name labels on shore which could not be reconciled with other maps. Promotional maps tend to list non-notable subdivisions; other sources report 4th class post offices, which were typically just a place in a store or railroad station or even a private residence where people could come to post and pick up their mail.
329:"An entry with Feature Class = Populated Place represents a named community with a permanent human population, usually not incorporated and with no legal boundaries, ranging from rural clustered buildings to large cities and every size in between. The boundaries of most communities classified as Populated Place are subjective and cannot be determined."
24:
515:, to mark the boundaries between properties. Many (but not all) "corners" that have survived on maps that appear at intersections and boundaries are not actually the populated places at all, but rather the marker trees, usually named after the property owner of the property that they primarily stood on, that are
525:(Interesting factoids: It was expressly illegal under federal law and under state law in states such as West Virginia to remove a corner tree back in the 19th century; and one important point of West Virginian law was whether one could take the word of a dead person about which tree was a marker tree.)
699:
As with the place names books, quality is variable, and those from around 1900 tend to be a bit gushing in their praises of the forefathers and heavy on the anecdotes. That said, their age (typically with a few decades of the foundation of the places, at least outside the east coast) and attention to
173:
of a place, the "feature class" labels do not carry the same official standing. They're simply used for "efficient data search and retrieval purposes" and "have no status as standards". In fact, GNIS specifically does not involve itself in such geographic minutiae as the differences between hills and
160:
journal, as well as items copied from larger scale topographic maps. One can readily deduce that these entries are not reflected in the small-scale topographic maps, which already adds an element of doubt; in the case of the nautical charts, which can be verified online, we have found that the charts
193:
Since GNIS staff has been unable to maintain
Domestic administrative names for quite some time (since October 1, 2014), these records will be archived from GNIS database and will longer be available through the GNIS search application. The following feature classes will be archived: Airport, Bridge,
111:
Queens, and the USGS employee who added the location to the database failed to recognize the subtle difference in spacing which was used to distinguish a train station from a community on the topo map. This particular error doesn't seem to have been repeated by
Knowledge (XXG) since we already had a
110:
a human settlement at a given location, but in many cases it's been found that the place name has only been used in conjunction with a railroad siding, ranch, windmill or other feature. For example, Haberman, NY was the location of a train station built to serve the
Haberman Manufacturing Company in
102:
Each place is assigned an official name and a "feature class" such as Park, School, Dam, Populated Place or Locale. Locale is meant to encompass miscellaneous human-made features such as battlefields, campgrounds, farms, railroad sidings, windmills, etc. However, since the topo maps that provide the
151:
information. Although this type of coverage is sometimes presented as evidence of notability, they don't meet our "significant coverage" requirement since they're simply copied from another source by an automated program. Knowledge (XXG) also forms a link in this chain of errors: When we describe a
300:
Many websites use GNIS for automated location data. When you search for real estate listings, store locations or weather reports, the name is used to mark a point on a map and return the requested information. The source isn't saying that the location is notable, probably doesn't do business there
690:
In many states people took it upon themselves to identify the origins of the names of places within the state. These vary in quality but have often helped to clarify matters by giving a more specific characterization of the places in question. We have found these used as GNIS sources, often quite
155:
GNIS itself has been found to propagate questionable information from other sources. Most entries were taken from USGS topographic maps at the smallest scale (1:24000 or 1:25000), but we have also found entries copied from NOAA navigational charts, from Forest
Service maps, from promotional maps,
285:
Knowledge (XXG) is a trusted source that many organizations rely on. For example, some of these places appear on Google Maps with descriptions such as "Jones
Windmill is an unincorporated community in Smith County", even though the "unincorporated community" designation has never appeared in a
245:
Knowledge (XXG) wants the centres of towns and cities. In Payne's own word in the USGS report on GNIS phase 1, the selection of a coördinate for a big town or city is "subjective", and the GNIS rule was, in contrast, to pick a prominent civic feature (town hall, main intersection, main public
572:
books for a particular locality. Arcadia books are not the be-all-and-end-all, but they do point the way and are generally the results of local historians already having done for us the poring over old maps, records, and photographs. Arcadia (and other local history) books helped sort out
492:
Springs, California" articles, once we found a book that documented the histories of the springs in
California; now mainly done, with a few articles still requiring more detailed attention, because the documentation was just a mention or it wasn't in the book at all or some other
331:
Knowledge (XXG) doesn't have a specific definition of what qualifies as a "legally recognized populated place", but repeated discussions have concluded that simply being listed in a government database or appearing on a map does not meet the
984:
286:
reliable source - it was applied by a
Knowledge (XXG) editor, based on their own interpretation of an erroneous "populated place" label. When we keep these stubs, we play an active role in creating and propagating false information.
426:
979:
420:
612:
These are useful for telling whether an "unincorporated community" that is just a dot nowadays is a historical post-town/post-village or only a post office; that then might be found in local county/state histories.
432:
402:
396:
374:
98:
is the official repository for place names in the United States, with a database of over 2 million natural and man-made features. Entries are compiled from sources such as atlases, gazetteers and topo maps.
463:
wiki, documenting some of the problems with the 2007 and 2009 mass imports of GNIS data into OpenStreetMap. Elsewhere on the OSM wiki are warnings about importing data from
Wikidata and Knowledge (XXG).
590:
500:
234:
Knowledge (XXG) wants the mid-point of linear features. However, the rules for the GNIS data compilation were that the primary coördinate be the "mouth" of the feature and secondary coördinates be
602:
414:
479:
124:
365:
496:
380:
355:
231:
408:
386:
578:
345:
1004:
222:, pace several AFD discussions where discussion has been derailed by what turned out to be a single-digit typing error on the part of a data entry clerk, they may not be
242:
552:
83:
or another more accurate category. There are countless instances of discrepancies between the GNIS and print versions of the
National Gazetteer, a publication of the
547:
530:
473:
127:
for Jolly Dump, South Dakota shows that it was never anything more than a place where railroad cars were loaded and unloaded, yet a Google search brings up the
87:
with the same entries. This means that everything from small homesteads to railroad junctions to river crossings have been mislabeled as "populated places".
79:(GNIS) database. Unfortunately, a major flaw has been found in this source: GNIS has labeled many locations as "populated places" in error rather than as a
450:
253:
Further complicating this is that there were alternative forms of the database that substituted coördinate information from the National Map database.
143:("lastminute.com has a fantastic range of hotels in Jolly Dump, with everything from cheap hotels to luxurious five star accommodation available!"), a
964:
557:
194:
Building, Cemetery, Church, Dam, Forest, Harbor, Hospital, Mine, Oilfield, Park, Post Office, Reserve, School, Tower, Trail, Tunnel, and Well.
249:
While in phase 1 coördinates were read straight from the markers on the maps, in phase 2 coördinates were interpolated, using contour lines.
39:
It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Knowledge (XXG) contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of
40:
152:
place as an "unincorporated community", a label that is often completely unsourced, Google Maps copies it as a description of the place.
95:
76:
950:
932:
605:). All of these were two-sentence GNIS-only stubs at the time of deletion nomination, all claiming "unincorporated community".
84:
359:
128:
582:
309:
If it's listed in GNIS, wouldn't that make it a "populated, legally recognized place" and therefore presumed notable per
206:
Knowledge (XXG) articles bulk-added in earlier years based upon these archived records now link to blank records on the
999:
144:
75:
Knowledge (XXG) has thousands of "populated place" stubs which were mass-created from the United States government's
764:
320:
586:
598:
341:
To illustrate the range of misidentified places, here is a list of AfD discussions of GNIS "populated places":
453:- an essay on how to apply notability standard to listings in gazetteer and gazetteer-like sources like GNIS.
739:
535:
115:
article based on a different source, but it did appear in other GNIS-derived sources such as Google Maps.
44:
485:
54:
369:
207:
445:
310:
140:
521:
199:
80:
136:
32:
884:
721:
574:
569:
727:. Reston, VA: United States Board on Geographic Names, Domestic Names Committee. December 2016.
947:
929:
657:
634:
876:
677:
649:
626:
112:
123:
Errors quickly propagate to other online sources which rely on GNIS for location data. Our
901:
Payne, Roger L. (1983). McEwen, Robert B.; Winter, Richard E.; Ramey, Benjamin S. (eds.).
664:
390:
653:
630:
271:
They're generally accurate, but like any reliable source they're susceptible to errors.
993:
673:
460:
47:. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints.
902:
617:, in particular, has a uniform scheme for this. Take care about dates, of course.
349:
148:
294:
But it returned 6,000 Google search results - There's even a FedEx office there!
132:
961:
Manual of Instructions for the Survey of the Public Lands of the United States
243:
Knowledge (XXG):WikiProject Geographical coordinates#Which coordinates to use
944:
George Washington's Eye: Landscape, Architecture, and Design at Mount Vernon
667:
157:
456:
427:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Silver Hill, Charlton County, Georgia
421:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Aurant, California (2nd nomination)
226:. This is because Knowledge (XXG) has different rules to the GNIS rules.
887:
433:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Scoria Point Corner, North Dakota
352:
in Washington State, shown to be named after various railroad employees
403:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Saint Joseph Youth Camp, Arizona
156:
from Rand-McNally atlases, from books of place names, and even from a
910:. Geological Survey Circular. United States Geological Survey. 895-F.
397:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Willy Dick Crossing, Washington
375:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Road Junction Windmill, Arizona
880:
637:
435:- scenic overlook in a national park, listed as a "populated place"
323:, "populated place" is a designation for places that are generally
208:
https://edits.nationalmap.gov/apps/gaz-domestic/public/search/names
740:"The Brief, Baffling Life of an Accidental New York Neighborhood"
501:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Allen Shop Corner, Virginia
175:
660:
415:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Caldwell Pines, California
238:
as long as it indicated what (other) map(s) the feature crossed.
200:
https://www.usgs.gov/us-board-on-geographic-names/domestic-names
867:"The Admissibility of Hearsay Evidence in Boundary Disputes".
503:— An old surveying technique in centuries past was the use of
480:
Knowledge (XXG):WikiProject California/GNIS cleanup task force
429:- A deserted swamp with no buildings mislabeled as a community
246:
library, and so forth) rather than attempt a geometric centre.
18:
366:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/West Junction, Illinois
926:
A Golden Weed: Tobacco and Environment in the Piedmont South
497:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Acors Corner, Virginia
919:(6 ed.). Reston, Virginia: United States Geological Survey.
381:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Bormister, California
356:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Headquarters, Arizona
232:
Knowledge (XXG):WikiProject Geographical coordinates/Linear
409:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Fish Pond, Kentucky
387:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Monkey Box, Florida
593:) actually was; and conversely made the cases stronger
346:
Knowledge (XXG):Articles for deletion/Susie, Washington
62:
917:
Geographic Names Information System: Data Users Guide
788:
786:
553:
Knowledge (XXG):WikiProject Washington/GNIS cleanup
548:Knowledge (XXG):WikiProject Minnesota/GNIS cleanup
301:and most likely isn't even aware of its existence.
210:interface to the "gaz-domestic" (NGNDB) database.
648:. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott & co. 1880.
531:Knowledge (XXG):WikiProject Kentucky/GNIS cleanup
139:with coordinates and elevation copied from GNIS,
218:While the GNIS entries are generally considered
188:
1005:Knowledge (XXG) essays about reliable sources
474:User:SportingFlyer/Arizona placenames cleanup
423:- Formerly a railroad station, now a railyard
411:– A literal pond, listed as a populated place
8:
265:Aren't government sources always reliable?
186:In 2017 the USGS made this announcement:
985:/Robert M. Rennick Manuscript Collection
621:Baldwin, Thomas; Thomas, Joseph (1855).
457:https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/USGS_GNIS
41:Knowledge (XXG)'s policies or guidelines
965:United States Bureau of Land Management
816:
710:
558:User:Hog Farm/Missouri attention needed
279:What's the harm in keeping these stubs?
106:It's difficult to prove that there was
348:– 15 industrial rail spurs within the
328:
828:
804:
792:
722:"Principles, Policies and Procedures"
716:
714:
451:WP:Knowledge (XXG) is not a gazetteer
7:
488:— a effort to deal with all of the "
476:— includes a list of river crossings
169:Although GNIS provides the official
904:Geographic Names Information System
674:Lippincott's gazetteer of the world
646:Lippincott's gazetteer of the world
96:Geographic Names Information System
77:Geographic Names Information System
980:/Ramsay Place-Name Card Collection
738:Schultz, Isaac (15 October 2019).
623:Lippincott's pronouncing gazetteer
522:George Washington knew about this.
389:– A literal box in the marshes of
45:thoroughly vetted by the community
14:
840:
771:. United States Geological Survey
625:. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott.
182:Feature classes abandoned in 2014
700:detail can help resolve matters.
358:– The headquarters building for
131:Facebook page, a list of nearby
22:
16:Essay on editing Knowledge (XXG)
963:. Technical bulletins. Vol. 6.
327:legally defined or recognized:
769:U.S. Board on Geographic Names
360:Petrified Forest National Park
1:
583:Escalle, Larkspur, California
383:– Numerous individual ranches
129:"Things to do in Jolly Dump"
654:loc.gdc/scd0001.00193145826
631:loc.gdc/gdclccn.tmp96023479
587:Salminas Resort, California
1021:
875:(3): 255–257. March 1909.
599:Ettawa Springs, California
52:
928:. Yale University Press.
924:Swanson, Drew A. (2014).
137:"Populated Place Profile"
915:Payne, Roger L. (1985).
236:any point on the feature
214:Reliability of locations
585:; helped identify what
519:the populated places.
393:, listed as a community
1000:Knowledge (XXG) essays
942:Manca, Joseph (2012).
564:Books to check against
540:from their names alone
536:User:Hog Farm/Kentucky
368:– A railroad junction
204:
486:User:Hog Farm/springs
149:daylight savings time
119:Propagation of errors
43:, as it has not been
687:Books of place names
542:might be problematic
869:Columbia Law Review
696:Old local histories
482:, projects include
377:– Several windmills
857:, 8th Leigh. 697.
575:Robert, California
570:Arcadia Publishing
568:There are usually
417:– a stand of trees
399:– A river crossing
165:Official standards
854:Harriman v. Brown
319:According to the
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678:Internet Archive
671:
641:
538:— articles that
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370:west of the city
202:
176:Hometown Locator
145:weather forecast
113:Haberman station
65:
26:
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468:Cleanup efforts
442:
440:Further reading
405:– A summer camp
391:Lake Okeechobee
339:
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91:Feature classes
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831:, pp. 161–162.
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952:9781421405612
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946:. JHU Press.
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934:9780300191165
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337:Relevant AfDs
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141:nearby hotels
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135:locations, a
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817:Swanson 2014
812:
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773:. Retrieved
768:
759:
747:. Retrieved
743:
733:
645:
622:
615:Lippincott's
614:
594:
567:
539:
516:
512:
509:corner trees
508:
507:, variously
505:marker trees
504:
489:
350:Hanford Site
340:
332:requirement.
324:
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30:
765:"How Do I?"
638:tmp96023479
224:appropriate
31:This is an
994:Categories
829:Manca 2012
805:Payne 1985
793:Payne 1983
705:References
609:Gazetteers
513:line trees
446:WP:GEOLAND
362:in Arizona
311:WP:GEOLAND
843:, p. 106.
819:, p. 195.
668:24447594M
490:Something
158:philately
974:See also
661:02002832
220:accurate
55:Shortcut
888:1109094
807:, p. 7.
795:, p. 5.
676:at the
595:against
517:between
459:at the
63:WP:GNIS
691:badly.
581:) and
493:reason
81:locale
908:(PDF)
885:JSTOR
841:USBLM
775:9 May
749:9 May
725:(PDF)
133:FedEx
108:never
33:essay
948:ISBN
930:ISBN
777:2020
751:2020
658:LCCN
635:LCCN
511:and
321:USGS
241:Per
230:Per
171:name
147:and
85:USGS
877:doi
650:hdl
627:hdl
325:not
257:FAQ
125:AfD
996::
883:.
871:.
785:^
767:.
742:.
713:^
665:OL
663:.
656:.
633:.
499:,
317:A:
307:Q:
298:A:
292:Q:
283:A:
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269:A:
263:Q:
197:—
178:.
967:.
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890:.
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