An official website of the United States government                

----

end of header

# History

###### You are here: Census.gov ›  History ›  FAQs › Geography FAQs | Innovations FAQs › How does the census help keep me from getting lost?

Skip top of page navigation

                - History Main
                - Agency History                    - Director Biographies
                  - Census Facilities
                  - Suitland, MD
                  - Notable Alumni
                - Innovations                    - Data Collection
                  - Technology
                - Programs                    - Agriculture
                  - Demographic
                  - Housing
                  - Economic
                  - Geography
                  - Governments
                - Through the Decades                    - Fast Facts
                  - Overview
                  - Index of Questions
                  - Questionnaires
                  - Census Instructions
                - Genealogy                    - Decennial Census Records
                  - Other Resources
                - Reference                    - Data@Museums
                  - Artifacts
                  - Lesson Plans
                  - Legislation
                  - Maps
                  - Oral Histories
                  - Privacy & Confidentiality
                  - Apportionment
                  - Publications 
                - Home Page Archive                    - 2024
                  - 2023
                  - 2022
                  - 2021
                  - 2020
                  - 2019
                  - 2018
                  - 2017
                  - 2016
                  - 2015
                  - 2014 
                - FAQs                    - Genealogy
                  - Agency History
                  - Demographic
                  - Economic
                  - Governments
                  - Agriculture
                  - Geography
                  - Innovations
                  - Miscellaneous

### Innovations FAQs

### Also in this Section:

                          - What is the connection between the U.S. Census Bureau and IBM?
                          - How does the census help keep me from getting lost?
                          - When did the U.S. Census Bureau begin using statistical sampling?
                          - When was UNIVAC I installed at the U.S. Census Bureau?
                          - Does the U.S. Census Bureau still use punch cards to process census data?

## How does the census help keep me from getting lost?

To aid in collecting data during the 1990 census, the Census Bureau developed the  "Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing" (TIGER) system.  Using the U.S. Geological Survey's maps, TIGER added additional information (roads, rivers, railroads, etc.) to create maps that are the basis for the global positioning systems many drivers have on the dashboards of their automobiles.

CONNECT WITH US**********

                            - Information Quality
                            - Data Linkage Infrastructure
                            - Data Protection and Privacy Policy
                            - Accessibility
                            - FOIA
                            - Inspector General
                            - No FEAR Act
                            - U.S. Department of Commerce
                            - USA.gov

----

Measuring America's People, Places, and Economy

Is this page helpful?
YesNo

NO THANKS

255 characters maximum255 characters maximum reached

Thank you for your feedback.Comments or suggestions?