RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Florida >> Hillsborough County >> Keene >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Keene, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Keene 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 Keene:
    • 28.096100, -82.151600
    • 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.
    • Open the Heavens-Above website centered on Keene
  • 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 Hillsborough County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Hillsborough County
    • Since Keene is near Pasco County and also Polk County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Pasco County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Polk 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:
    • Open the Waymark.com report for Keene

Communities Also Named Keene ...

We found seventeen communities that are also named Keene.

There is one other community in Florida that is also named Keene.

Beyond Florida, we know of sixteen communities that are located in the United States and Canada. Of these sixteen communities, sixteen are located in the United States and one is in Canada.

  • Communities Located In Florida ...
    • Nassau County
      • This Keene is located in Nassau County and lies 165 miles [265.5 km]<1> to the north of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Nassau County community of Keene.
  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • California
      • Kern County
      • This Keene is located in Kern County and lies 2,183 miles [3,513.2 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Kern County community of Keene.
    • Colorado
      • Chaffee 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 Keene [Chaffee County].
      • Weld County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Colorado community of Keene [Weld County].
    • Kansas
      • Wabaunsee County
      • This Keene is located in Wabaunsee County and lies 1,093 miles [1,759 km]<1> to the northwest of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Wabaunsee County community of Keene.
    • Kentucky
      • Jessamine County
      • This Keene is located in Jessamine County and lies 695 miles [1,118.5 km]<1> to the north of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jessamine County community of Keene.
    • Nebraska
      • Kearney County
      • This Keene is located in Kearney County and lies 1,282 miles [2,063.2 km]<1> to the northwest of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Kearney County community of Keene.
    • New Hampshire
      • Cheshire County
      • This Keene is located in Cheshire County and lies 1,163 miles [1,871.7 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Cheshire County community of Keene.
    • New York
      • Essex County
      • This Keene is located in Essex County and lies 1,207 miles [1,942.5 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Essex County community of Keene.
      • Jefferson 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 New York community of Keene [Jefferson County].
    • North Carolina
      • Durham County
      • This Keene is located in Durham County and lies 574 miles [923.8 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Durham County community of Keene.
    • North Dakota
      • McKenzie County
      • This Keene is located in McKenzie County and lies 1,764 miles [2,838.9 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the McKenzie County community of Keene.
    • Ohio
      • Coshocton County
      • This Keene is located in Coshocton County and lies 845 miles [1,359.9 km]<1> to the north of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Coshocton County community of Keene.
    • Ontario
      • This Keene lies 1,136 miles [1,828.2 km]<1> to the north of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
    • Texas
      • Johnson County
      • This Keene is located in Johnson County and lies 951 miles [1,530.5 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Johnson County community of Keene.
    • Virginia
      • Albemarle County
      • This Keene is located in Albemarle County and lies 705 miles [1,134.6 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Albemarle County community of Keene.
    • Wisconsin
      • Portage County
      • This Keene is located in Portage County and lies 1,193 miles [1,919.9 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Keene that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Portage County community of Keene.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Keene ...

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.

  • Cattlemans Cove
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Cattlemans Cove is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cattlemans Cove
  • Cooks Cove
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Cooks Cove is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cooks Cove
  • Deer Creek Hollow
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Deer Creek Hollow is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Creek Hollow
  • Flowers
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Flowers is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flowers
  • Gator Trail
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Gator Trail is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gator Trail
  • Ham Oaks
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Ham Oaks is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ham Oaks
  • Horn Acres
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Horn Acres is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horn Acres
  • Knights
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Knights is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knights
  • Leaning Pine
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Leaning Pine is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leaning Pine
  • Martin Ranch
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Martin Ranch is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martin Ranch
  • Miley Trace
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Miley Trace is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miley Trace
  • Paradise Oaks
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Paradise Oaks is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise Oaks
  • Continue List   (4 more) ...
    • Ramblin Oaks
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Ramblin Oaks is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramblin Oaks
    • Rustic Oaks
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Rustic Oaks is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rustic Oaks
    • Rustic Oaks Plantation
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Rustic Oaks Plantation is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rustic Oaks Plantation
    • Windcall
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Windcall is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windcall

How Far From Keene 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 Keene to various places of note, such as the White House.

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

  • Tampa, which is the Seat of Hillsborough County, lies 20 miles [32.2 km]<1> to the west southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Keene to Tampa, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take just over a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take most of a day.
  • Tallahassee, which is the State Capital of Florida, lies 206 miles [331.5 km] to the northwest (NW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take a little over three hours, a buggy would take 8 days and walking would take 12 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 801 miles [1,289.1 km] to the north northeast (NNE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 32 days and walking would take 46 days.
  • The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,598 miles [10,618.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,266 miles [11,693.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,166 miles [8,313.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>'

Footnotes ...

<1>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- Keene) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<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 Keene 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>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.
<4>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 Keene to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Keene. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 28.0961, Longitude: -82.1516       In this case, the coordinates for Keene have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<5>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 310.678 degrees.
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.071 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 309.763 degrees.