OTHER GEOGRAPHIES LOCATING SHAPEFILES FOR YOUR SELECTED INDING ATA FOR Y GEOGRAPHY F D M There are a few other levels of geography, COMMUNITY such as ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs), Shapefiles and generalized cartographic school districts and voting districts (VTDs), boundary files can be downloaded from the that can be used to determine TIGER products webpage at: neighborhood boundaries and to obtain http://www.census.gov/geo/maps- data. data/data/tiger.html

For more information about these and other DEMOGRAPHIC, HOUSING AND ECONOMIC DATA geographies, see our Geographic Terms and Concepts: American FactFinder (AFF) is an online mapping and data dissemination tool that http://www.census.gov/geo/reference/terms.html allows users to create, modify and download demographic data tables by a variety of geographic areas. USING TIGERWEB TO IDENTIFY YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD http://factfinder2.census.gov

TIGERweb is a simple way to view our geographic boundaries on-line without having to download the data. The tool can be launched from: QUESTIONS? http://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/tigerwebmain/ti gerweb_main.html Call: 301-763-1128 In this tool, you can overlay geographic boundaries with aerial imagery to E-Mail: determine which type of geography most [email protected] accurately represents your community.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCE FOR UNDERSTANDING CENSUS GEOGRAPHY

Our Guide to State and Local Census Geography provides specific information about the geographic entities within each state.

http://www.census.gov/geo/reference/geoguide.html June 2013 U.S. Department of Commerce Economics and Statistics Administration U.S. CENSUS BUREAU census.gov

DEFINING MY NEIGHBORHOOD AND/OR COMMUNITY COUNTY SUBDIVISIONS/MINOR CIVIL DIVISIONS BLOCK GROUPS are statistical subdivisions of census tracts. They generally contain The Census Bureau has data for a variety of County subdivisions are the primary between 600 and 3,000 people. Users can legal (i.e. counties, townships) and divisions of counties and county choose to build their neighborhood statistical areas (i.e. census blocks, urban equivalents. They can be either legal boundaries with block groups if census areas). However, these boundaries may or entities (mainly minor civil divisions) or tracts are too large. may not correspond with locally recognized statistical entities (census county divisions). neighborhoods, subdivisions, or The MCDs in 12 states (Connecticut, Maine, CENSUS BLOCKS are the smallest level of communities. There are several options for Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New geography delineated by the Census Bureau for statistical purposes. Like the census finding data for your neighborhood and Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, tracts, block boundaries can be visible community using census geography. Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and features (i.e. streets, roads, streams) or Wisconsin), can perform the same PLACES governmental functions as incorporated invisible boundaries (i.e. school districts or places. In these 12 states, it is likely your townships). In densely populated areas, The most common geography for defining community is an MCD if it is not an block boundaries are smaller and generally communities is Place. There are two types incorporated place or CDP. follow a city block. In rural areas, blocks of places the Census Bureau tabulates data can cover hundreds of square miles. Census for: incorporated places and census BUILDING BLOCK GEOGRAPHIES: USING CENSUS block demographic data are available for designated places (CDPs). TRACTS, CENSUS BLOCK GROUPS AND CENSUS the decennial census only. BLOCKS Incorporated places are legal entities such Census tracts, block groups, and blocks can as cities, towns, villages, or boroughs. If your community or neighborhood cannot be grouped to more precisely define the be defined at the place or county neighborhoods or subdivisions that are not CDPs are defined to provide data for settled subdivision levels, you can define the area accurately represented by larger geographic concentrations of population, which are using the smallest levels of geographies areas. identifiable by name but are not legally offered by the Census Bureau: census incorporated. CDPs cannot exist within tracts, block groups, and census blocks. incorporated places. Neighborhoods within NOTE ON ACS DATA: CENSUS TRACTS are small subdivisions of an incorporated place, such as Northridge If you are using the American Community in Los Angeles city, cannot be a CDP. counties delineated for statistical purposes. Tracts contain between 1,200 and 8,000 Survey (ACS) datasets, note that census Local partners provide CDP boundaries to people. Their boundaries often follow tracts and block groups are the lowest the Census Bureau every 10 years. The visible features but can also follow invisible levels of geography offered in the ACS and program participants may not report all boundaries, such as those for incorporated are only available in the 5-year estimates. locally known areas to the Census Bureau. places. Census tracts may be helpful, as ACS data is more accurate for more CDPs change in between decennial neighborhood boundaries sometimes populous geographic areas. Therefore, you censuses only when area from the CDP is coincide with the boundaries of a census should use the largest geographic area annexed into an incorporated place. tract or group of tracts. For example, in the possible to define your community. city of Los Angeles, the tracts are defined to match the community boundaries.