Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Preston, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Preston and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Preston
- 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 Preston:
- 34.525920, -86.172481
- 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 Preston
- Bird Watching ...
- We enjoy finding new spots for bird watching and we use the eBird website for local sighting reports and to help identify hotspots.
- The eBird website is organized on a county-by-county basis. We have selected Marshall County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Marshall County
- Since Preston is near Jackson County and also Madison County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Jackson County
- eBird sighting report for Madison County
- 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 Preston ...
We found 46 communities that share the name Preston.
Within Alabama, the name Preston is unique.
Beyond Alabama, we know of another 46 communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these 46 communities, 43 are located in the United States and three are in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Arkansas
- California
- Connecticut
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Finney County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of Preston [Finney County].
- Pratt County
- This Preston is located in Pratt County and lies 724 miles [1,165.2 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Preston that is located in Marshall County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Pratt County community of Preston.
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Caddo Parish
- This Preston is located in Caddo Parish and lies 470 miles [756.4 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Preston that is located in Marshall County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Caddo Parish community of Preston.
- De Soto Parish
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Louisiana community of Preston [De Soto Parish].
- Manitoba
- Maryland
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Hickory County
- This Preston is located in Hickory County and lies 457 miles [735.5 km]<1> to the northwest of the Preston that is located in Marshall County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Hickory County community of Preston.
- Jasper County
- This Preston is located in Jasper County and lies 497 miles [799.8 km] to the west northwest of the Preston that is located in Marshall County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jasper County community of Preston.
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Nova Scotia
- We haven't found the location of this community yet.
- Ohio
- Hamilton County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Ohio community of Preston [Hamilton County].
- Muskingum County
- This community is historic<3> and although located in Muskingum County, we don't know where within the county.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Muskingum County community of Preston.
- Oklahoma
- Beaver County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Oklahoma community of Preston [Beaver County].
- Okmulgee County
- This Preston is located in Okmulgee County and lies 560 miles [901.2 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Preston that is located in Marshall County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Okmulgee County community of Preston.
- Ontario
- This Preston lies 687 miles [1,105.6 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Preston that is located in Marshall County.
- Pennsylvania
- Luzerne County
- This Preston is located in Luzerne County and lies 724 miles [1,165.2 km]<1> to the northeast of the Preston that is located in Marshall County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Luzerne County community of Preston.
- McKean County
- This Preston is located in McKean County and lies 634 miles [1,020.3 km] to the northeast of the Preston that is located in Marshall County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the McKean County community of Preston.
- Wayne County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Pennsylvania community of Preston [Wayne County].
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Hardin County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Tennessee community of Preston [Hardin County].
- Knox County
- This community is historic<3> and we have very little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Tennessee community of Preston [Knox County].
- Texas
- Dallas County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Texas community of Preston [Dallas County].
- Grayson County
- This Preston is located in Grayson County and lies 598 miles [962.4 km]<1> to the west of the Preston that is located in Marshall County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Grayson County community of Preston.
- Wharton County
- This community is historic<3> and although located in Wharton County, we don't know where within the county.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Wharton County community of Preston.
- Virginia
- Henry County
- This Preston is located in Henry County and lies 377 miles [606.7 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Preston that is located in Marshall County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Henry County community of Preston.
- Washington County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Virginia community of Preston [Washington County].
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
Curious and Interesting Names Near Preston ...
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.
- Breezeway Bay
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Breezeway Bay have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Breezeway Bay
- Breezeway Bay is located in Marshall County
- Five Points
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Five Points have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Points
- Five Points is located in Marshall County
- Glen Haven
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Glen Haven have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Haven
- Glen Haven is located in Marshall County
- Grant
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grant
- Grant is located in Marshall County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 902 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Grant <5>
- Kirbytown
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast) - Lakeview Beach
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lakeview Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeview Beach
- Lakeview Beach is located in Jackson County
- Oak Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north) - Pleasant Hill
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
- Pleasant Hill is located in Jackson County
- Skyline Shores
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Skyline Shores have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skyline Shores
- Skyline Shores is located in Jackson County
- Tanglewood
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tanglewood have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tanglewood
- Tanglewood is located in Marshall County
How Far From Preston 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 community such as Preston to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Preston and extending to:
- Guntersville, which is the Seat of Marshall County, lies 14 miles [22.5 km]<1> to the south southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Preston to Guntersville, with an average speed<6> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take four to five hours.
- Montgomery, which is the State Capital of Alabama, lies 148 miles [238.2 km] to the south (S). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 6 days and walking would take 9 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 588 miles [946.3 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take just over a day, a buggy would take 23 days and walking would take 34 days.
- The shortest distance<7> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,477 miles [10,423.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,188 miles [11,568 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,064 miles [8,149.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<10>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Preston. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Marshall County: www.marshallco.org/www/
The official website for State of Alabama: https://www.alabama.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 from Point A (ie- Preston) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Preston. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 34.5259, Longitude: -86.1725 In this case, the coordinates for Preston have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <2> | 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 Mile's to see Pete ... Mile's 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 Preston 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 county. 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. |
| <3> | 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 Preston, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | 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. |
| <5> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <6> | 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. |
| <7> | 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 Preston to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 313.352 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 309.053 degrees. |
| <10> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 309.818 degrees. |