NEW TNMCorps Mapping Challenge for City / Town Halls in LA, MS, & AL!

Some work has already been done in these states, however there are still many points yet to be collected.   

Sources/Usage: Public Domain. View Media Details

Tips and tricks for this challenge:  

Local Government: Incorporated vs. Unincorporated 

1. Mississippi’s local government primarily consists of cities, towns, and villages while Alabama’s local government consists of cities and towns.   
2. The structure of Louisiana’s local government is slightly different since Louisiana uses the county-equivalent of parishes.  Municipalities in Louisiana consist of cities, towns, villages, and consolidated city-parishes.  
3. There are also a few census designated places (CDPs) throughout these states, though volunteers don’t need to worry about CDPs since they fall under county government and are unlikely to have a designated city/town hall. 
   • Not sure what a census designated place is?   
   • American FactFinder’s Glossary contains an entry defining CDPs.  
   • This Federal Register entry also clearly defines CDPs.   
4. See the Cities vs. Towns vs. Villages article in our September 2019 newsletter for more information on the different types of governing bodies. 

Possible Sources 

1. Remember to find an authoritative source (e.g., the city or village’s website) for each feature before adding it to the web editor.   
   • See the How to Spot an Authoritative (Re)Source article in our November 2017 newsletter for more information on why this is important.   
2. Municipal leagues for Mississippi and Alabama contain a directory of local governments in each state with corresponding city websites. 
3. Wikipedia also contains a list of municipalities for Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama. 
4. See the American FactFinder Tutorial article in our November 2019 newsletter for tips on using American FactFinder to identify local governing entities.   

Proper Point Placement 

1. Our November 2018 newsletter includes an article on aerial interpretation for city/town hall structures. This article walks readers through how to find the correct building to place a point on when examining aerial photography. 

Interested in collecting city/town halls elsewhere? 

Remember that we’re collecting city/town halls nationally, so feel free to research these features throughout the entire U.S.  Other priority states include (in order of priority): FL, ME, NH, VT, MA, CT, and RI.  However, note that only city/town halls in LA, MS, and AL will count towards this challenge.   

If you have any questions during the mapping process, reach out to us at nationalmapcorps@usgs.gov and someone will be happy to assist!  Thank you for all that you do, and happy mapping!