This dataset contains is a list of Iowa features contained in the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). The GNIS is the Federal standard for geographic nomenclature. The U.S. Geological Survey developed the GNIS for the U.S. Board on Geographic Names, a Federal inter-agency body chartered by public law to maintain uniform feature name usage throughout the Government and to promulgate standard names to the public. The GNIS is the official repository of domestic geographic names data; the official vehicle for geographic names use by all departments of the Federal Government; and the source for applying geographic names to Federal electronic and printed products of all types. See http://geonames.usgs.gov for additional information. The Geographic Names Information System contains information about physical and cultural geographic features of all types, current and historical, but not including roads and highways. The database assigns a unique, permanent feature identifier, the Feature ID, as a standard Federal key for accessing, integrating, or reconciling feature data from multiple data sets. The GNIS collects data from a broad program of partnerships with Federal, State, and local government agencies and other authorized contributors.
This dataset has the following 11 columns:
| Column Name | API Column Name | Data Type | Description | Sample Values |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feature ID | feature_id | number | Permanent, unique feature record identifier as defined in INCITS 446-2008, Identifying Attributes for Named Physical and Cultural Geographic Features (Except Roads and Highways) of the United States, Its Territories, Outlying Areas, and Freely Associated Areas, and the Waters of the Same to the Limit of the Twelve-Mile Statutory Zone. | 1975469 2712755 2002236 460498 1906831 view top 100 |
| Feature Name | feature_name | text | Official feature name as defined in INCITS 446-2008, Identifying Attributes for Named Physical and Cultural Geographic Features (Except Roads and Highways) of the United States, Its Territories, Outlying Areas, and Freely Associated Areas, and the Waters of the Same to the Limit of the Twelve-Mile Statutory Zone. | United Methodist Church First Baptist Church First Presbyterian Church Church of Christ Trinity Lutheran Church view top 100 |
| Feature Class | feature_class | text | A feature class is a designation for a group of features in a broadly defined descriptive category. All features are assigned to one and only one class. They do not individually classify all kinds of cultural and natural features. Feature classes include: Airport, Arch, Area, Bar, Bay, Beach, Bend, Bridge, Building, Canal, Cape, Cemetery, Census, Channel, Church, Civil, Cliff, Crossing, Dam, Falls, Flat, Forest, Gut, Harbor, Hospital, Island, Lake, Levee, Locale, Military, Mine, Oilfield, Park, Pillar, Plain, Populated Place, Post Office, Range, Reserve, Reservoir, Ridge, School, Spring, Stream, Summit, Swamp, Tower, Trail, Tunnel, Valley, and Woods. Full definitions of each feature class is available in the metadata. | Church Cemetery Building Locale Post Office view top 100 |
| Primary State | state_alpha | text | Two letter designation for the primary US State. The primary US State is the State containing the primary point for the feature. Where Iowa is not listed as primary, it is considered a Secondary State containing the feature. | IA MO MN IL NE view top 100 |
| Primary County Name | county_name | text | The primary county is the county containing the primary point for the feature. | Polk Linn Scott Black Hawk Woodbury view top 100 |
| Elevation (Meters) | elev_in_m | number | The elevation in meters above sea level of the feature at the primary point (positive number) or depth of a feature at the lowest point below sea level (negative number). Elevation figures are not official and do not represent precisely measured or surveyed values. The data are extracted from the National Elevation Dataset (http://ned.usgs.gov/) for the primary coordinates and may differ from elevations cited in other sources. The differences will be most evident for features such as summits where precision is of more concern and where the local relief (rate of change of elevation) may be more prominent. However, the elevation figures are within tolerances for the data for most points and sufficiently accurate for purposes of general information. | 374 291 375 340 289 view top 100 |
| Elevation (Feet) | elev_in_ft | number | The elevation in feet above sea level of the feature at the primary point (positive number) or depth of a feature at the lowest point below sea level (negative number). Elevation figures are not official and do not represent precisely measured or surveyed values. The data are extracted from the National Elevation Dataset (http://ned.usgs.gov/) for the primary coordinates and may differ from elevations cited in other sources. The differences will be most evident for features such as summits where precision is of more concern and where the local relief (rate of change of elevation) may be more prominent. However, the elevation figures are within tolerances for the data for most points and sufficiently accurate for purposes of general information. | 1227 955 1230 1115 948 view top 100 |
| USGS Map Name | map_name | text | The name of the standard USGS 7.5x7.5 minute quadrangle map(s) containing the representation of the feature. | Davenport East Des Moines SW Iowa City West Des Moines SE Cedar Rapids South view top 100 |
| Primary Point (Coordinates) | primary_point | point | The official feature location is a single point (in decimal degrees) to which the official feature name is associated in order to ensure positive and unique identification and association, also referred to as the primary point. The placing of the location point is generally at or near the geographic center of the feature, but there are exceptions for certain classes of features. For example, the official feature location of flowing bodies of water (streams, rivers, creeks, etc.) or trending linear features (valleys, gulchs, gullys, hollows, etc.) is at the mouth. | {"coordinates":[0,0],"type":"Point"} {"coordinates":[-92.9190871,41.4033311],"type":"Point"} {"coordinates":[-92.3946293,41.045014300000005],"type":"Point"} {"coordinates":[-91.7987737,42.8402589],"type":"Point"} {"coordinates":[-95.053324,42.30665],"type":"Point"} view top 100 |
| Date Created | date_created | calendar_date | The date the feature was initially committed to the GNIS database. | 1979-04-30T00:00:00.000 2003-01-15T00:00:00.000 2003-09-26T00:00:00.000 2003-09-16T00:00:00.000 2000-01-01T00:00:00.000 view top 100 |
| Date Edited | date_edited | calendar_date | The date any attribute of an existing feature was last edited. | 2020-04-08T00:00:00.000 2020-05-21T00:00:00.000 2016-09-22T00:00:00.000 2019-05-28T00:00:00.000 2016-09-21T00:00:00.000 view top 100 |