Miscellaneous Information

Various Identification Codes ...

GNIS Codes ...

The U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN) was created to address the problems caused by spelling and naming variations. The BGN will usually recognize an existing name or, when necessary, chose a name for a geographic feature (such as a mountain, lake, river, stream, city, town, village, dam, bridge, etc).

The BGN names are kept in a database called the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) and it is the official Federal repository. The GNIS is operated and maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

A unique and permanent identifier has been assigned for each name in the GNIS database. These names and identifiers are definitive and it is intended that they are to be used by all departments of the Federal Government:

GNIS ID for Prairie Home: 2396267

GNIS ID for Cooper County: 758481

GNIS ID for Missouri: 1779791

FIPS Codes ...

In a past effort, various federal agencies worked together to create a set of codes with a purpose similar to the GNIS codes. These codes are called the Federal Information Processing Standard (or the FIPS 55 codes). Although they are still used by some organizations, the FIPS codes are obsolete and will ultimately be replaced by the GNIS codes.

The following FIPS codes apply to Prairie Home:

Place (Community) Code:	59726
State Code:	29 (Missouri)
County Code:	053 (Cooper County)

Since the Place and County FIPS codes are not unique and can be repeated in other States, it's necessary to combine the State code with the Place and County FIPS codes to uniquely identify them - for example:

State/Place Code:	29/59726
State/County Code:	29/053

As already mentioned, the FIPS codes are to be replaced by the GNIS codes. The following reflect those changes:

	FIPS Code	translates to	GNIS Code
State of Missouri:	29		1779791
Cooper County:	29/053		758481
Prairie Home:	29/59726		2396267

GPS Location - GNIS vs Census ...

An important aspect of the GNIS code is that it assigns a GPS location (the latitude/longitude) to the geographic feature. This location is simply a point on the map and does not represent the size or shape of the feature. In the case of Prairie Home, it is a point within Prairie Home that might be a post office, the city hall or simply an intersection - the point should really be considered arbitrary and only indicating a general location.

For Prairie Home, the GNIS GPS location is given as:

Lat:   38° 48' 48"   (or 38.81°)

Lon:   -92° 35' 26"   (or -92.59°)  

Determined by its statistical needs, the Census Bureau has defined a sampling area for Prairie Home - this area also contains a map point. As with the GNIS code, the location of the Census point should be considered as being arbitrary within the sampling area.

For Prairie Home, the Census 2010 GPS location is given as:

Lat:   38° 48' 48"   (or 38.81°)

Lon:   -92° 35' 26"   (or -92.59°)  

The map point defined by the Census Bureau lies 18.4 feet to the northwest<1> of the point given by the GNIS (see above).

You might note that the GPS location given for the 2010 Census is different than the location that was specified by the 2000 Census:

Lat:   38° 48' 46"   (or 38.81°)

Lon:   -92° 35' 23"   (or -92.59°)  

The GPS location given for the 2000 Census lies 316.4 feet to the southeast<2> of the point given by the 2010 Census.

Regional Codes ...

For statistical purposes, the US Census Bureau has divided the country into four Regions. Prairie Home is located in Region #2 (the Midwest Region).

In turn, the US Census Bureau has further divided each Region into Divisions. Prairie Home is located in Division #4 (the West North-Central Division).

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has created ten Federal Regions. Prairie Home is located in Region VII (Region 7).

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has created ten Management Regions. Prairie Home is located in Region VII (Region 7).

ZIP Codes ...

While some people have used a ZIP code to identify a community, the purpose of the ZIP code was to make mail delivery more efficient by grouping addresses together. Although the ZIP Code doesn't specifically identify a city like Prairie Home, it does identify addresses that are in (or near) Prairie Home. It's important to remember that the boundaries of a ZIP Code are defined by the needs of the USPS and can be changed, re-assigned or overlapped with other ZIP Codes.

The ZIP code for Prairie Home: 65068<3>

Referenced GNIS Records ...

GNIS ID #724867   (Name of Record: Prairie Home)

Class: populated place

A place or area having clustered or scattered buildings and a permanent population (such as a city, settlement, town or village). The boundaries may or may not coincide with the perceived population.

A 'populated place' record may have a corresponding 'census' or 'civil' record. The information contained in the 'populated place' record applies only to the class and should not be confused with either the 'census' and 'civil' classes.

County: Cooper

Map Name: Prairie Home

Lat: 38.8130847       Lon: -92.5904668  

Elev: 272 ft.

GNIS ID #2396267   (Name of Record: City of Prairie Home)

Class: civil

A political division formed for administrative purposes (such as a borough, county, incorporated place, parish, town or township).

A 'civil' record may have a corresponding 'census' or 'populated place' record. The information contained in the 'civil' record applies only to the class and should not be confused with either the 'census' and 'populated place' classes.

County: Cooper

Map Name: Prairie Home

Lat: 38.8135674       Lon: -92.590557  

Elev: 272 ft.

Referenced FIPS Records ...

FIPS Code: 29/59726   (Place Name: Prairie Home)

County: Cooper     (FIPS State/County: 29/053)

Class: C1

Identifies an incorporated place (ie- Prairie Home) that does not serve as a primary county division - or in other words, it is included in and is part of a primary county division (ie- Cooper County).

GSA Code: 6480

MRF Code: 3535

Off-the-Road Links ...

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Prairie Home. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for State of Missouri: https://www.mo.gov/

The official website of the U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN)

The official website of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)

The official website of the U.S. Census Bureau

The official website of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

The official website of the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)