Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Smithson, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Smithson and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Smithson
- 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 Smithson:
- 33.309835, -86.952492
- 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 Smithson
- 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 Jefferson County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Jefferson County
- Since Smithson is near Shelby County and also Tuscaloosa County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Shelby County
- eBird sighting report for Tuscaloosa 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 Smithson ...
We found three communities that share the name Smithson.
Within Alabama, the name Smithson is unique.
Beyond Alabama, we know of another three communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- California
- Indiana
- Montana
Curious and Interesting Names Near Smithson ...
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.
- Chestnut Glen
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chestnut Glen have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Glen
- Chestnut Glen is located in Shelby County
- Fox Trace
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south) - Greenwood
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
- Greenwood is located in Jefferson County
- Hickory Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hickory Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Grove
- Hickory Grove is located in Jefferson County
- Hilltop
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast) - Hopewell
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north) - Loveless Park
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Loveless Park have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loveless Park
- Loveless Park is located in Jefferson County
- Pleasant Hill
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
- Pleasant Hill is located in Jefferson County
- Rockdale
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest) - Shadywood
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east) - Summit Farm
(Less than 2 miles to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Summit Farm have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summit Farm
- Summit Farm is located in Jefferson County
- Weeping Oaks
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Weeping Oaks have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weeping Oaks
- Weeping Oaks is located in Shelby County
- Whispering Oaks
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Whispering Oaks have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whispering Oaks
- Whispering Oaks is located in Jefferson County
How Far From Smithson 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 Smithson to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Smithson and extending to:
- Birmingham, which is the Seat of Jefferson County, lies 17 miles [27.4 km]<2> to the north northeast. If you could walk a straight line from Smithson to Birmingham, with an average speed<4> 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 five to six hours.
- Montgomery, which is the State Capital of Alabama, lies 74 miles [119.1 km] to the south southeast (SSE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than two hours, a buggy would take most of three days and walking would take 5 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 673 miles [1,083.1 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 27 days and walking would take 39 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,568 miles [10,570.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,276 miles [11,709.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,152 miles [8,291.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Smithson. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Jefferson County: www.jeffcointouch.com/
The official website for State of Alabama: https://www.alabama.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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 Smithson, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <2> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Smithson) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Smithson. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.3098, Longitude: -86.9525 In this case, the coordinates for Smithson have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | 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. |
| <5> | 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 Smithson to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 313.753 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 309.348 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.401 degrees. |