What would happen if you had a scale large enough to hold the 331.4 million people in the U.S. exactly balanced?
Where would the midpoint be? In Hartville, Mo., which is a metropolis of 594 people located in southwest Missouri. The midpoint has been in Missouri since 1980 gradually moving south and west just like the people of our great country.
When the first census was completed in 1790, the center of population was about thirty miles from Baltimore. The entire U.S. population was 3.9 million. Waives of immigration as people fled tyranny or sought economic security grew the population. So did internal movements, like the California gold rush and Oklahoma land giveaways.
Hartville has a history. Missouri was the 12th state to join the Confederacy. The Battle of Hartville took place for three days in January 1863. There were 111 casualties for the greys and 78 for the blues. Despite these numbers, historians awarded victory to the greys because the blues left town after the confrontation was over.
Hartville is not a lot different from Robbinsville – and yet, it is. Somehow, the population grew by 12 percent between 2019 and 2020. I guess the good citizens realized the census count was important, or maybe there was a waive of immigration.
Basketball is the big sport in town. The Hartsville Eagles beat the Kickapoo Chiefs 48-45 in a division championship game last year. The FFA has 80 members.
What is there to do in Hartville?
Trip Advisor had to broaden its analysis beyond the 425 acres within the city limits. Laura Ingalls Wilder Historic Home and Museum is 10.8 miles away. LJD’s diner gets four stars and advertises “a cheap, all-you-can-eat lunch buffet” on their website. If you are seeking a more adult experience, the Frosty Mug is 15.7 miles away, next to a place called Fun City.
There are no local prohibitions on alcohol sales in Missouri. The legislature decided this debate was theirs and theirs alone many years ago.
Like many small cities in rural America, Hartville’s downtown is struggling. One of the largest employers is the Dollar General store. Taxes are pretty low. A farm with 308 acres is available for $1.3 million. Property taxes are $790 per year. A very nice home with 58 acres is available for $515,000. It gets an agricultural tax exemption because 150 round bales of hay are produced annually when the grass is cut.
Is Robbinsville different from Hartville? Probably not. Just a good old American small city where life goes on despite the craziness around us. Besides, all you get for being the center of U.S. population is a bronze monument provided by the National Geodetic Survey which is a division of NOAA.
Being the center of population rather reminds me of Atlas carrying the entire planet on his soldiers.
All he got for that effort was a backache and usurpation by Hercules as the strongest person on the planet.
Roger Carlton writes a bi-weekly column for The Graham Star. He can be reached via email, rcarlton57@hotmail.com.