Plato, Mo.: America’s Mean Center of Population

A village of 109 people and less than three miles across has been declared the country’s mean center of population, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The village is Plato, Missouri, and its location is an indicator that the population center has gradually drifted southwest. We talk with the mayor of the village, Bob Biram, 66, who has been living in Plato his whole life. He says “there’s a little bit of everything” in Plato. View Larger Map