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

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Sandy, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Sandy 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 Sandy:
    • 27.273856, -82.115674
    • 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 Sandy
  • 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 Manatee County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Manatee County
    • Since Sandy is near DeSoto County and also Sarasota County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for DeSoto County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Sarasota 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 Sandy

Communities Also Named Sandy ...

We found 23 communities that are also named Sandy.

Within Florida, the name Sandy is unique.

Beyond Florida, we know of 23 communities that are located in the United States.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Arkansas
      • Craighead County
      • This Sandy is located in Craighead County and lies 763 miles [1,227.9 km]<1> to the northwest of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Craighead County community of Sandy.
    • Georgia
      • Butts County
      • This Sandy is located in Butts County and lies 424 miles [682.4 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Butts County community of Sandy.
      • 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 Georgia community of Sandy [Jefferson County].
    • Kentucky
      • Muhlenberg County
      • This Sandy is located in Muhlenberg County and lies 754 miles [1,213.4 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Muhlenberg County community of Sandy.
    • Michigan
      • Huron 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 Michigan community of Sandy [Huron County].
      • Montcalm 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 Michigan community of Sandy [Montcalm County].
    • Nebraska
      • Wheeler 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 Nebraska community of Sandy [Wheeler County].
    • Oklahoma
      • Harmon County
      • This Sandy is located in Harmon County and lies 1,174 miles [1,889.4 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Harmon County community of Sandy.
    • Oregon
      • Clackamas County
      • This Sandy is located in Clackamas County and lies 2,524 miles [4,062 km]<1> to the northwest of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Clackamas County community of Sandy.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Clearfield County
      • This Sandy is located in Clearfield County and lies 973 miles [1,565.9 km]<1> to the north of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Clearfield County community of Sandy.
    • South Carolina
      • Charleston County
      • This Sandy is located in Charleston County and lies 401 miles [645.3 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Charleston County community of Sandy.
    • Tennessee
      • Fentress County
      • This Sandy is located in Fentress County and lies 646 miles [1,039.6 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fentress County community of Sandy.
      • Hardeman 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 Sandy [Hardeman County].
      • Johnson County
      • This Sandy is located in Johnson County and lies 630 miles [1,013.9 km] to the north of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Johnson County community of Sandy.
    • Texas
      • Blanco County
      • This Sandy is located in Blanco County and lies 1,011 miles [1,627 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Blanco County community of Sandy.
      • Limestone County
      • This Sandy is located in Limestone County and lies 923 miles [1,485.4 km] to the west northwest of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Limestone County community of Sandy.
      • Willacy County
      • This Sandy is located in Willacy County and lies 969 miles [1,559.5 km] to the west of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Willacy County community of Sandy.
    • Utah
      • Salt Lake County
      • This Sandy is located in Salt Lake County and lies 1,922 miles [3,093.2 km]<1> to the northwest of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Salt Lake County community of Sandy.
    • Virginia
      • Rappahannock 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 Sandy [Rappahannock County].
    • West Virginia
      • Jackson 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 West Virginia community of Sandy [Jackson County].
      • Kanawha County
      • This Sandy is located in Kanawha County and lies 769 miles [1,237.6 km]<1> to the north of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Kanawha County community of Sandy.
      • Monongalia County
      • This Sandy is located in Monongalia County and lies 860 miles [1,384 km] to the north of the Sandy that is located in Manatee County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Monongalia County community of Sandy.
      • Taylor 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 West Virginia community of Sandy [Taylor County].

Curious and Interesting Names Near Sandy ...

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.

  • Belgium ‑ Historic
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Belgium is located in DeSoto County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belgium
  • Bethany
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Bethany is located in Manatee County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethany
  • Bridges
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Bridges is located in Hardee County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bridges
  • Cubitis
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
    • Cubitis is located in DeSoto County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cubitis
  • Hidden River
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Hidden River is located in Sarasota County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hidden River
  • Hull
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Hull is located in DeSoto County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hull
  • Lake Suzy
    (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Lake Suzy is located in DeSoto County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Suzy
  • Limestone
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Limestone is located in Hardee County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Limestone
  • Pine Level
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Pine Level is located in DeSoto County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Level
  • Shiney Town
    (15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)
    • Shiney Town is located in Sarasota County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shiney Town
  • Tryon
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Tryon is located in DeSoto County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tryon

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

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

  • Bradenton, which is the Seat of Manatee County, lies 31 miles [49.9 km]<1> to the west northwest. If you could walk a straight line from Sandy to Bradenton, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of two days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take just over a day.
  • Tallahassee, which is the State Capital of Florida, lies 254 miles [408.8 km] to the north northwest (NNW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take four to five hours, a buggy would take 10 days and walking would take 15 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 854 miles [1,374.4 km] to the north northeast (NNE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 34 days and walking would take 49 days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,633 miles [10,674.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,297 miles [11,743.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,201 miles [8,370.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>'

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 drawn from Point A (ie- Sandy) 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 Sandy 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 Sandy, 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 Sandy 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 Sandy. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 27.2739, Longitude: -82.1157    
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 310.595 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 304.863 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 309.92 degrees.