The 2019 cartographic boundary shapefiles are simplified representations of selected geographic areas from the U.S. Census Bureau's Master Address File / Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (MAF/TIGER) Database (MTDB). These boundary files are specifically designed for small-scale thematic mapping. When possible, generalization is performed with the intent to maintain the hierarchical relationships among geographies and to maintain the alignment of geographies within a file set for a given year. Geographic areas may not align with the same areas from another year. Some geographies are available as nation-based files while others are available only as state-based files.

           The  geodatabase is a container for storing spatial and attribute data and the relationships that exist among them. In a geodatabase, which is a vector data format, features and their
           associated attributes can be structured to work together as an integrated system using rules, relationships, and topological associations. In other words, the geodatabase allows you to
           model the real world as simply or complexly as your needs dictate. These national goedatabases are availiable at the 1:5,000,000, 1:2,0000,000 and 1:500,000 scales.