“the literal heart of the USA”
While any measurement of the exact center of the United States will always be imprecise for a number of reasons, due to such factors as the exact placement of thousands of miles of changing shoreline, the U.S. National Geodetic Survey (NGS) has produced designated coordinates for the center of the United States. From the time of the 1912 additions of New Mexico and Arizona, until the 1959 additions of Alaska and Hawaii, the NGS placed the geographic center of the entire United States at a point near the town of Lebanon, Kansas. Since 1959 this location still stands as the Geographic Center of the Contiguous United States, The location for contiguous U.S. center is pinpointed by a historical marker that is located within a small park at the intersection of AA Road and K-191, accessible by a turn-off from U.S. Route 281 approximately 1.74 miles northwest of the town center of Lebanon, Kansas. The marker supposedly indicates the actual point measured by a survey performed in 1918. The measured center is about a half to three-quarters of a mile away on a private farm. The farm's owner did not want tourists trudging through his field, so the marker was placed as close as possible. There is usually an American flag flying on the pole placed on top of the monument. Just to the south of the monument, yards away, is a covered picnic area and small four-pew chapel where a couple can take wedding vows.
If you're in the area, may as well stop by and take a picture. At least you can say that you were at the center of the country (well, the lower 48 at least). Also, if you were a fan of American Gods by Neil Gaiman, this will be of particular interest to you.
Stopped by after seeing the World's Largest Ball of Twine. If in the neighborhood it's worth a photo, after all, it is the only one in the US.
Okay
Cool spot, nothing at all anywhere near it though.
Fun stop that you cannot do anywhere else. Out in the middle of a corn field but has plenty of room to maneuver and turn around. Sign the guest book in the chapel.
When you plug in the address in Waze it does not take you here if you use “Geographic center of the US” it properly directs you
The stop was kind of cool and was only a few minutes off our route. Unfortunately the registry in the chapel was missing
Great photo op and beautiful setting. Quiet and peaceful. The eye of the storm of our country in 2022.
For a place in the middle of nowhere USA, I loved this stop. There is a picnic area nice small park around the location marker. I brought my lunch and took a driving break and enjoyed the sound of the wind across the plains. Plus, RoadTrippers took me along a dirt road where I found the greatest Horse who whinnied at me as I drove by.
Definitely cool to see and take in. I wouldn’t go more than 20 minutes out of my way to experience it though. If your gps is like mine, it will say you’ve reached it a few hundred feet beforehand. Just look for that little white church you see in the photos and it’ll get you there.
Do. It follow Roadtrippers “Navigate” to this, it wanted us to go south from the Geodetic center of North America when it is actually north from there.
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Geographic Center of the Contiguous United States
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- Sun - Sat: 12:00 am - 11:59 pm
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