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, establish 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 numeric 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 Wantagh: 968763

GNIS ID for Nassau County: 974128

GNIS ID for New York: 1779796

FIPS Codes ...

In a past effort, various federal agencies created 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 Wantagh:

Place (Community) Code:	78146
State Code:	36 (New York)
County Code:	059 (Nassau 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:	36/78146
State/County Code:	36/059

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 New York:	36		1779796
Nassau County:	36/059		974128
Wantagh:	36/78146		968763

GPS Location - GNIS Coordinates ...

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 Wantagh, it is a point within Wantagh 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 Wantagh, the GNIS GPS location is given as:

Lat: 40° 41' 1" (or 40.68°)

Lon: -73° 30' 36" (or -73.51°)

Regional Codes ...

For statistical purposes, the US Census Bureau has divided the country into four Regions. Wantagh is located in Region #1 (the Northeast Region).

In turn, the US Census Bureau has further divided each Region into Divisions. Wantagh is located in Division #2 (the Middle Atlantic Division).

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has created ten Federal Regions. Wantagh is located in Region II (Region 2).

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has created ten Management Regions. Wantagh is located in Region II (Region 2).

Referenced GNIS Records ...

GNIS ID #968763 (Name of Record: Wantagh)

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: Nassau

Map Name: Freeport

Lat: 40.6837121 Lon: -73.5101258

Elev: 7 ft.