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A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
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Outdoor Activities ...

As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy).

When in Houston, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Houston and the surrounding area.

  • Astronomy & Satellites ...
    • Whether using binoculars, a small telescope or the naked-eye, the Heavens-Above website can help you to find your way around the night-time sky. In addition to detailed sky charts, their website will help you find planets, asteriods, comets, satellites and their tracks across the sky.
    • To give accurate results, Heavens-Above requires the latitude and longitude of your location. As a starting point, when we link to Heavens-Above, we pass this GPS location for Houston:
    • 61.630125, -149.813837
    • Once you're on the Heavens-Above website, you can improve its accuracy by giving a more precise longitude and latitude as your actual position.
    • The Heavens-Above Website, centered on Houston
  • Waymarking ...
    • Looking for somewhere out of the ordinary? Find a unique place and want to share it with others? Then it's time to visit Waymarking.com:
    • Waymark.com

Communities Also Named Houston ...

We found 28 communities that share the name Houston.

Within Alaska, the name Houston is unique.

Beyond Alaska, we know of another 28 communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these 28 communities, 27 are located in the United States and one is in Canada.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • Winston County
      • This Houston is located in Winston County and lies 3,282 miles [5,281.9 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Winston County community of Houston.
    • Arkansas
      • Perry County
      • This Houston is located in Perry County and lies 3,055 miles [4,916.5 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Perry County community of Houston.
    • British Columbia
      • This Houston lies 975 miles [1,569.1 km]<1> to the east southeast.
    • California
      • Shasta County
      • This community is historic<2> and we have very little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the California community of Houston [Shasta County].
      • Siskiyou County
      • This community is historic and we have very little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the California community of Houston [Siskiyou County].
    • Colorado
      • Weld County
      • This Houston is located in Weld County and lies 2,376 miles [3,823.8 km]<1> to the east southeast.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Weld County community of Houston.
    • Delaware
      • Kent County
      • This Houston is located in Kent County and lies 3,400 miles [5,471.8 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Kent County community of Houston.
      • Sussex County
      • This Houston is located in Sussex County and lies 3,416 miles [5,497.5 km] to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Sussex County community of Houston.
    • Florida
      • Suwannee County
      • This Houston is located in Suwannee County and lies 3,647 miles [5,869.3 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Suwannee County community of Houston.
    • Georgia
      • Heard County
      • This Houston is located in Heard County and lies 3,407 miles [5,483 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Heard County community of Houston.
    • Idaho
      • Custer County
      • This Houston is located in Custer County and lies 1,906 miles [3,067.4 km]<1> to the east southeast.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Custer County community of Houston.
    • Illinois
      • Randolph County
      • This Houston is located in Randolph County and lies 2,975 miles [4,787.8 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Randolph County community of Houston.
    • Indiana
      • Jackson County
      • This Houston is located in Jackson County and lies 3,046 miles [4,902.1 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jackson County community of Houston.
    • Kansas
      • Graham County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<3> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of Houston [Graham County].
    • Kentucky
      • Breathitt County
      • This Houston is located in Breathitt County and lies 3,220 miles [5,182.1 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Breathitt County community of Houston.
    • Louisiana
      • Allen Parish
      • This community is historic<2> and we have very little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Louisiana community of Houston [Allen Parish].
    • Minnesota
      • Houston County
      • This Houston is located in Houston County and lies 2,616 miles [4,210 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Houston County community of Houston.
    • Mississippi
      • Chickasaw County
      • This Houston is located in Chickasaw County and lies 3,239 miles [5,212.7 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Chickasaw County community of Houston.
      • Lauderdale County
      • This Houston is located in Lauderdale County and lies 3,334 miles [5,365.6 km] to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lauderdale County community of Houston.
    • Missouri
      • Texas County
      • This Houston is located in Texas County and lies 2,950 miles [4,747.6 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Texas County community of Houston.
    • Nebraska
      • York County
      • This Houston is located in York County and lies 2,572 miles [4,139.2 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the York County community of Houston.
    • North Carolina
      • Rowan County
      • This community is historic<2> and we have very little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the North Carolina community of Houston [Rowan County].
      • Union County
      • This Houston is located in Union County and lies 3,453 miles [5,557.1 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Union County community of Houston.
    • Ohio
      • Shelby County
      • This Houston is located in Shelby County and lies 3,039 miles [4,890.8 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Shelby County community of Houston.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Washington County
      • This Houston is located in Washington County and lies 3,174 miles [5,108.1 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Washington County community of Houston.
    • Tennessee
      • Wayne County
      • This Houston is located in Wayne County and lies 3,198 miles [5,146.7 km]<1> to the east.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Wayne County community of Houston.
    • Texas
      • Harris County
      • This Houston is located in Harris County and lies 3,275 miles [5,270.6 km]<1> to the east southeast.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Harris County community of Houston.
    • Virginia
      • Halifax County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<3> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Virginia community of Houston [Halifax County].

Curious and Interesting Names Near Houston ...

As we travel, we always see a community with a name that gives pause. While there are names which are interesting or familiar, some catch our attention or strike our fancy. We always wonder about such a name. If time permits and the community is not too far, we'll usually try to make a side-trip.

  • Big Lake
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
  • Cottonwood
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cottonwood have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottonwood
  • John Fitzgerald Kennedy City
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for John Fitzgerald Kennedy City have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for John Fitzgerald Kennedy City
  • Knik
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Knik have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knik
  • Lucky Shot Landing
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lucky Shot Landing have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucky Shot Landing
  • Meadow Lakes
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Meadow Lakes have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadow Lakes
  • Nancy Lake
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Nancy Lake. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<6>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nancy Lake
  • Willow
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
  • Willow Lake
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Willow Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Lake

How Far From Houston to ...

We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a city such as Houston to various places of note, such as the White House.

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Houston and extending to:

  • Juneau, which is the State Capital of Alaska, lies 577 miles [928.6 km]<1> to the east southeast (ESE). If you could drive a straight line from Houston to Juneau, with an average speed<7>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take just over a day to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 33 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 23 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 3,352 miles [5,394.5 km] to the east (E). Driving would take 7 days, a buggy would take 131 days and walking would take 191 days.
  • The shortest distance<8> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,972 miles [9,611 km] and it lies to the north (N).<9>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,669 miles [10,732.7 km] and it lies to the north (N).<10>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,211 miles [8,386.3 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<11>

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Houston. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for State of Alaska: alaska.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Houston) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Houston. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 61.6301, Longitude: -149.8138    
<2>We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Houston, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<3>If we encounter the name of what might be a community, our methodology is to add that name to our Gazetteer as a placeholder. As we find more information about that community, it will be added to our Gazetteer.

Just as a reminder: Our definition of a community is rather broad and includes those places (or areas) where several families lived and had a name which identified that place. For example, you might hear somebody say that they are going over to Rock Creek to see Pete ... Rock Creek is just a gas station and a couple of homes at the crossroads. While it might not be on the map, everybody in the area knows it by that name.

Places of interest include buildings at a crossroad, several families clustered in a hollow or maybe the location of a way station. It also includes places like mines, lumber camps, ferry crossings, etc. The community might still exist, is now gone or only existed for just a short period of time.

Also keep in mind that Houston could have been on the original document by mistake, misspelled, the original/alternate name of a community that we've listed elsewhere or was placed in the wrong . Sometimes a post office or train station would have a different name than the community where it's located, so two names might be referring to the same community - we're working to straighten it all out.
<4>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<5>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<6>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<7>While we have tried to pick reasonable speeds, the rate of travel is very theoretical - obstacles like fences, hills, lakes, river crossings and rest stops have been ignored. When we say 'Days' of travel, we're assuming 8 hours of travel per day.
<8>The shortest line can be visualized by stretching a string on a Globe from Point A to Point B - this is known as a Great Circle Route. Where you might expect the shortest route from Houston to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East.
<9>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 4.299 degrees.
<10>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 9.028 degrees.
<11>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 346.457 degrees.









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 09 Mar 2024