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 The Geographic Areas Reference Manual traces its beginnings to the Census Tract Manual. The first edition of the Census Tract Manual appeared in 1934. It described the series of steps a local Census Tract Committee needed to follow when it developed a census tract plan. The Census Bureau published the fifth (and last) edition of the Census Tract Manual in 1966. By then, the manual had been expanded to describe (1) the steps a local committee needed to take to develop a new census tract plan or to revise an existing one; (2) the basic definitional criteria for census tracts; (3) the standards set by the Census Bureau for census tracts; (4) the various types of data produced by the Census Bureau for census tracts; and (5) a history of, and general background information for, the census tract program. The census tract was the first, and for many years the only, geographic area that the Census Bureau delineated in cooperation with local officials.

Gradually, the Census Bureau involved tribal, State, and local officials in the delineation of additional geographic entities such as CCDs, CDPs, BNAs, and BGs. When the Census Bureau asked tribal, State, or local officials to delineate these entities, it also provided entity-specific guidelines to facilitate their work. Because these programs took place at various times during each decade, the Census Bureau did not attempt to consolidate the separate program requirements into a single document. Given the increasing role of tribal, State, and local agencies in the delineation of geographic areas and the obsolescence of the Census Tract Manual, there was an obvious need for a document that included background material and guidelines for the geographic entities used in the Census Bureau’s statistical programs. This document would describe the roles of the participants working with the Census Bureau to implement the guidelines applicable to these geographic entities.

To make effective use of the statistical data presented by the Census Bureau, it is helpful for data users to be informed about the total framework of Census Bureau geography as it evolves to meet the challenges of modern Census Bureau Geography1-7