Geographic Center of Georgia Virtual Geocache Reward 2.0
Maps are more than diagrams that help you navigate from point A to point B. They are windows into information that allow us to explore our world, understand it better, and engage with it more productively. With that info, cities, states, nations, continents and beyond have been mapped for those curious souls wishing to visit specific directional points. Be it be the northernmost, southernmost, easternmost, westernmost, highest, lowest, most remote, geographic center, population center, etc.
The importance of such places is intriguing (since geographical borders are just artifical, man-made creations after all) but they are places that we seek out. They are places that we say are important. To quote Mr. Nancy from American Gods: "This isn't about what is, it's about what people think is. It's all imaginary anyway. That's why it's important." We take what we know and go from there. The center point of a place helps us define that place. It gives us context for the surrounding area, people, and culture. It gives us a central point of reference, and it's also pretty cool.
(Map showing the rough geographic center of the lower 48 states in the US)
(How many center points, or memorable directional points have you visited?
While not a requirement, please feel free to share them in your log)
The U.S. Geological Survery (USGS) first measured the center point of states in the early 1920's. At that time, the center for a state was found by suspending a cardboard cutout of the state by a string, and then drawing a vertical line from the suspension point. After rotating the cutout 90 degrees and drawing another vertical line from the new suspension point, the intersection of the two vertical lines was used as the geographic center. The result was dependent upon the type of projection used.
Although there have been different definitions offered for the geographic center, an intuitive one, and the one currently used by the USGS, is "the State of gravity of the surface, or that point on which the surface of the area would balance if it were a plane of uniform thickness." An updated list of geographic centers using this definition (which is equivalent to the state's centroid) was plotted and most of the original center points have been slightly modified in recent years.
For instance, the geographic center of the contiguous United States was long believed to be near Lebanon, Kansas. With the new projection, it was determined to be 5.4 miles from Agra, Kansas, 5.7 miles from Kensington, Kansas, and 26.9 great circle miles west of the longstanding designated site near Lebanon. Luckily for Georgia, its center point was only shifted by .3 miles after the recalculation.
Logging Requirements:
1.10 miles S-SE from where you stand at GZ is the geographic center of the state of Georgia (as recorded in 1981). With the new measurements, you are actually 1.45 miles N of the current center. Since both of these points are located on private property, this historical marker will have to do. You're nearly balanced here, but not quite.
To gain credit for this virtual you must visit the Geographic Center of Georgia historical marker and take a photo of yourself, a personal item, or some other identifiable object that is either centered or off balance and upload it with your log. If you're feeling adventurous, show off your skills by balancing an object, or yourself, at GZ. You must attach the photo with your log and no old photos from previous visits are allowed. Even if you've previously visited, you must revisit the center point to get credit for this virtual.
(Here's my geo-pup Ozzy posing as a centered example at the geographic center)
Virtual Rewards 2.0 - 2019/2020
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between June 4, 2019 and June 4, 2020. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 2.0 on the Geocaching Blog.