bodies or rivers. This follows historic population distribution trends and larger cities tend to be concentrated near the coastline and smaller inland agricultural populations are located along river basins (Small & Nicholls, 2003). URBAN | RURAL PLACES 13,000 12,000 Number And Size Of Rural & Urban Places1 11,000 While a large portion of the population is urban, the number of small entirely rural places far exceeds the number of larger urban ones (Figure 3). What we think of as cities, towns, villages and boroughs are defined by the US Census Bureau as incorporated places. An incorporated place is established to provide governmental functions for a compact populated place (US Census Bureau, 2012b). There are 12,228 small incorporated places with less than 1,000 people, of which 8,833 have populations with less than 500 people, and 4,400 have populations with less than 200 people (US Census Bureau, 2010). 10,000 9,000 8,000 7,000 The number of small rural places is also likely to be much greater because these figures do not include “town or township governments” which are found in 20 states across the United States and referred to as Minor Civil Divisions (MCDs). The governments of MCDs serve a broader area as opposed to one specific populated place, but most MCDs also contain one or more populated places within their boundaries. If the populated places of MCDs were taken into consideration, it is believed that there would be a much larger number of small rural “populated places” than depicted here. 6,000 5,000 4,000 3,000 Urban | Rural Population Change According to the US Census Bureau (2012b), an incorporated place is established to provide governmental functions for a concentration of people. It refers to the compact grouping of a population which is what we usually think of as a city, town, or village. 1 5 1,000 0 < 1,000 1,000 < 2,000 2,000 < 5,000 5,000 < 10,000 10,000 < 25,000 25,000 < 50,000 10,000 < 25,000 5,000 < 10,000 2,000 < 5,000 0 < 2,000 0 > 1,000,000 500,000 < 1,000,000 250,000 < 500,000 100,000 < 250,000 In a period of one hundred and fifty years, the percentage of the population living in urban and rural areas was opposite of what it is today. In 1860, close to 81 percent of the population was rural and only 19 percent of the population was urban (US Census Bureau, 1990). During the same period, the United States population has grown from 31.4 million to 249.3 million (US Census Bureau, 1990 & 2010a). During this period, growth took place in both rural and urban areas. The rural population grew from 25.2 million people in 1860 to around 59.5 million people today (US Census Bureau, 1990 & 2010a). Despite growth, rural areas have been 2,000 NUMBER OF PLACES Urban Rural Figure 3 | Number And Size Of Urban And Entirely Rural Places In The United States Source: US Census Bureau (2010a). Graphic: Author.