Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Watkins, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Watkins and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Watkins
- 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 Watkins:
- 33.336500, -86.694153
- 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 Watkins
- 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 Shelby County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Shelby County
- Since Watkins is near Jefferson County and also Talladega County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Jefferson County
- eBird sighting report for Talladega 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 Watkins ...
We found 26 communities that share the name Watkins.
Within Alabama, the name Watkins is unique.
Beyond Alabama, we know of another 26 communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Arkansas
- Boone County
- This community is historic<1> and we have very little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Arkansas community of Watkins [Boone County].
- White 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 Arkansas community of Watkins [White County].
- Colorado
- Adams County
- This Watkins is located in Adams County and lies 1,085 miles [1,746.1 km]<3> to the west northwest of the Watkins that is located in Shelby County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Adams County community of Watkins.
- Arapahoe 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 Colorado community of Watkins [Arapahoe County].
- Florida
- Illinois
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- Dade County
- This community is historic<1> and although located in Dade County, we don't know where within the county.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Dade County community of Watkins.
- Miller County
- This Watkins is located in Miller County and lies 459 miles [738.7 km]<3> to the northwest of the Watkins that is located in Shelby County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Miller County community of Watkins.
- Montana
- Madison County
- This Watkins is located in Madison County and lies 1,562 miles [2,513.8 km]<3> to the northwest of the Watkins that is located in Shelby County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Madison County community of Watkins.
- McCone County
- This Watkins is located in McCone County and lies 1,386 miles [2,230.6 km] to the northwest of the Watkins that is located in Shelby County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the McCone County community of Watkins.
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Pennsylvania
- Tennessee
- Davidson County
- This community is historic<1> and we have very little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Tennessee community of Watkins [Davidson County].
- DeKalb County
- This Watkins is located in DeKalb County and lies 184 miles [296.1 km]<3> to the north northeast of the Watkins that is located in Shelby County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the DeKalb County community of Watkins.
- Texas
- Pecos 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 Watkins [Pecos County].
- Terrell County
- This Watkins is located in Terrell County and lies 924 miles [1,487 km]<3> to the west of the Watkins that is located in Shelby County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Terrell County community of Watkins.
- Van Zandt County
- This Watkins is located in Van Zandt County and lies 543 miles [873.9 km] to the west of the Watkins that is located in Shelby County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Van Zandt County community of Watkins.
- Virginia
- West Virginia
- Arkansas
Curious and Interesting Names Near Watkins ...
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.
- Fungo Hollow
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fungo Hollow have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fungo Hollow
- Fungo Hollow is located in Shelby County
- Heritage Oaks
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Heritage Oaks have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heritage Oaks
- Heritage Oaks is located in Shelby County
- Hickory Ridge
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hickory Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Ridge
- Hickory Ridge is located in Shelby County
- Hunters Glen ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hunters Glen have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunters Glen
- Hunters Glen is located in Shelby County
- Indian Hills
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Hills
- Indian Hills is located in Shelby County
- Indian Springs Ranch
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian Springs Ranch have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Springs Ranch
- Indian Springs Ranch is located in Shelby County
- Indian Springs Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian Springs Village have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Springs Village
- Indian Springs Village is located in Shelby County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,628 people
- Indian Valley
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Valley
- Indian Valley is located in Shelby County
- Meadow Ridge
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Meadow Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadow Ridge
- Meadow Ridge is located in Shelby County
- Meadowbrook
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Meadowbrook have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadowbrook
- Meadowbrook is located in Shelby County
- Quail Run
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west) - Riverwood
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest) - Continue List (4 more) ...
- Shoal Run
(5 miles [8 km] to the north) - Sunnymeadows
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sunnymeadows have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunnymeadows
- Sunnymeadows is located in Shelby County
- Valley Station
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Valley Station have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Station
- Valley Station is located in Shelby County
- Wine Ridge
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wine Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wine Ridge
- Wine Ridge is located in Jefferson County
- Shoal Run
How Far From Watkins to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers, Almanacs & Directories that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as Watkins to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Watkins and extending to:
- Columbiana, which is the Seat of Shelby County, lies 12 miles [19.3 km]<3> to the south southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Watkins to Columbiana, with an average speed<5> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take five to six hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take nearly four hours.
- Montgomery, which is the State Capital of Alabama, lies 70 miles [112.7 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 about three full days and walking would take three full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 660 miles [1,062.2 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 26 days and walking would take 38 days.
- The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,555 miles [10,549.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,263 miles [11,688.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,140 miles [8,272 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Watkins. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Shelby County: www.shelbycountyalabama.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 Watkins, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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 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 Watkins 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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Watkins) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Watkins. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.3365, Longitude: -86.6942 In this case, the coordinates for Watkins have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <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 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. |
| <6> | 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 Watkins to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 313.60 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 309.174 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.292 degrees. |