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

Outdoor Activities ...

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

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

  • Weather ...
  • 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 River Bend:
    • 27.693000, -82.432100
    • 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 River Bend
  • 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 River Bend is near Manatee County and also Pinellas County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Manatee County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Pinellas 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 River Bend

Communities Also Named River Bend ...

We found fifteen communities that are also named River Bend.

Within Florida, the name River Bend is unique.

Beyond Florida, we know of fifteen communities that are located in the United States.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • Bibb County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Alabama community of River Bend [Bibb County].
      • Cullman County
      • This River Bend is located in Cullman County and lies 506 miles [814.3 km]<2> to the north northwest of the River Bend that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Cullman County community of River Bend.
      • Tallapoosa 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 Alabama community of River Bend [Tallapoosa County].
    • Colorado
      • Elbert County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Colorado community of River Bend [Elbert County].
    • Georgia
      • Dougherty County
      • This River Bend is located in Dougherty County and lies 278 miles [447.4 km]<2> to the north northwest of the River Bend that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Dougherty County community of River Bend.
    • Louisiana
      • Bossier Parish
      • This River Bend is located in Bossier Parish and lies 745 miles [1,199 km]<2> to the west northwest of the River Bend that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Bossier Parish community of River Bend.
      • Saint Bernard Parish
      • This River Bend is located in Saint Bernard Parish and lies 475 miles [764.4 km] to the west northwest of the River Bend that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Saint Bernard Parish community of River Bend.
    • Maryland
      • Prince George's County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Maryland community of River Bend [Prince George's County].
    • Michigan
      • Clinton County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Michigan community of River Bend [Clinton County].
    • Missouri
      • Jackson County
      • This River Bend is located in Jackson County and lies 1,049 miles [1,688.2 km]<2> to the northwest of the River Bend that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jackson County community of River Bend.
    • North Carolina
      • Craven County
      • This River Bend is located in Craven County and lies 596 miles [959.2 km]<2> to the north northeast of the River Bend that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Craven County community of River Bend.
    • Texas
      • Hidalgo County
      • This River Bend is located in Hidalgo County and lies 972 miles [1,564.3 km]<2> to the west of the River Bend that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Hidalgo County community of River Bend.
      • Newton County
      • Although located in Newton County, we don't know the location within the county.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Newton County community of River Bend.
    • Virginia
      • Stafford County
      • This River Bend is located in Stafford County and lies 786 miles [1,264.9 km]<2> to the north northeast of the River Bend that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Stafford County community of River Bend.
    • West Virginia
      • Kanawha County
      • This River Bend is located in Kanawha County and lies 736 miles [1,184.5 km]<2> to the north of the River Bend that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Kanawha County community of River Bend.

Curious and Interesting Names Near River Bend ...

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.

  • Amanda
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Amanda is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amanda
  • College Chase
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • College Chase is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for College Chase
  • Green Acres
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Green Acres is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Acres
  • Gulf City
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Gulf City is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gulf City
  • Gull Haven
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Gull Haven is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gull Haven
  • Kims Cove
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Kims Cove is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kims Cove
  • Leon
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Leon is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leon
  • Manatee Harbor
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Manatee Harbor is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manatee Harbor
  • Mays
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Mays is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mays
  • Netherland
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Netherland is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Netherland
  • Pelican Point
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Pelican Point is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pelican Point
  • Pirates Point
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Pirates Point is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pirates Point
  • Continue List   (7 more) ...
    • Sable Cove
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Sable Cove is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sable Cove
    • Sandpiper Point
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Sandpiper Point is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandpiper Point
    • Shooks Folly
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Shooks Folly is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shooks Folly
    • Solitude
      (Less than 2 miles to the west)
      • Solitude is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Solitude
    • Twin Lake
      (Less than 2 miles to the west)
      • Twin Lake is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin Lake
    • Winding Creek
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Winding Creek is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winding Creek
    • Wolf Branch
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Wolf Branch is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolf Branch

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

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

  • Tampa, which is the Seat of Hillsborough County, lies 18 miles [29 km]<2> to the north. If you could walk a straight line from River Bend to Tampa, with an average speed<4> 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 five to six hours.
  • Tallahassee, which is the State Capital of Florida, lies 219 miles [352.4 km] to the north northwest (NNW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take nearly four hours, a buggy would take 9 days and walking would take 13 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 833 miles [1,340.6 km] to the north northeast (NNE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 33 days and walking would take 48 days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,629 miles [10,668.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,296 miles [11,741.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,197 miles [8,363.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>'

Footnotes ...

<1>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 Bird Creek to see Pete ... Bird 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 River Bend 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.
<2>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 drawn from Point A (ie- River Bend) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<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 River Bend, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<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 River Bend 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 River Bend. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 27.6930, Longitude: -82.4321       In this case, the coordinates for River Bend have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 310.794 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.151 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 309.934 degrees.