Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Birmingham, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Birmingham and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Birmingham
- 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 Birmingham:
- 40.877687, -91.947295
- 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 Birmingham
- 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 Van Buren County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Van Buren County
- Since Birmingham is near Jefferson County and also Henry County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Jefferson County
- eBird sighting report for Henry 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 Birmingham ...
We found 24 communities that share the name Birmingham.
Within Iowa, the name Birmingham is unique.
Beyond Iowa, we know of another 24 communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these 24 communities, 23 are located in the United States and one is in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alabama
- Jefferson County
- This Birmingham is located in Jefferson County and lies 580 miles [933.4 km]<1> to the south southeast of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jefferson County community of Birmingham.
- Colorado
- Huerfano 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 Birmingham [Huerfano County].
- Georgia
- Fulton County
- This Birmingham is located in Fulton County and lies 622 miles [1,001 km]<1> to the southeast of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fulton County community of Birmingham.
- Illinois
- Schuyler County
- This Birmingham is located in Schuyler County and lies 72 miles [115.9 km]<1> to the southeast of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Schuyler County community of Birmingham.
- Indiana
- Miami County
- This Birmingham is located in Miami County and lies 304 miles [489.2 km]<1> to the east of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Miami County community of Birmingham.
- Tippecanoe County
- This Birmingham is located in Tippecanoe County and lies 268 miles [431.3 km] to the east of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Tippecanoe County community of Birmingham.
- Kansas
- Haskell 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 Kansas community of Birmingham [Haskell County].
- Jackson County
- This Birmingham is located in Jackson County and lies 221 miles [355.7 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jackson County community of Birmingham.
- Kiowa 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 Kansas community of Birmingham [Kiowa County].
- Wyandotte 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 Kansas community of Birmingham [Wyandotte County].
- Kentucky
- Marshall County
- This Birmingham is located in Marshall County and lies 339 miles [545.6 km]<1> to the southeast of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Marshall County community of Birmingham.
- Michigan
- Oakland County
- This Birmingham is located in Oakland County and lies 464 miles [746.7 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Oakland County community of Birmingham.
- Mississippi
- Lee County
- This Birmingham is located in Lee County and lies 479 miles [770.9 km]<1> to the south southeast of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lee County community of Birmingham.
- Missouri
- Clay County
- This Birmingham is located in Clay County and lies 177 miles [284.9 km]<1> to the southwest of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Clay County community of Birmingham.
- New Jersey
- Burlington County
- This Birmingham is located in Burlington County and lies 906 miles [1,458.1 km]<1> to the east of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Burlington County community of Birmingham.
- Ohio
- Coshocton County
- This community is historic<3> and although located in Coshocton County, we don't know where within the county.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Coshocton County community of Birmingham.
- Erie County
- This Birmingham is located in Erie County and lies 499 miles [803.1 km]<1> to the east of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Erie County community of Birmingham.
- Guernsey County
- This Birmingham is located in Guernsey County and lies 553 miles [890 km] to the east of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Guernsey County community of Birmingham.
- Lucas County
- This community is historic and although located in Lucas County, we don't know where within the county.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lucas County community of Birmingham.
- Pennsylvania
- Allegheny 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 Pennsylvania community of Birmingham [Allegheny County].
- Chester County
- This Birmingham is located in Chester County and lies 861 miles [1,385.6 km]<1> to the east of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Chester County community of Birmingham.
- Huntingdon County
- This Birmingham is located in Huntingdon County and lies 718 miles [1,155.5 km] to the east of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Huntingdon County community of Birmingham.
- Saskatchewan
- This Birmingham lies 871 miles [1,401.7 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- Virginia
- Tazewell County
- This Birmingham is located in Tazewell County and lies 603 miles [970.4 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Birmingham that is located in Van Buren County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Tazewell County community of Birmingham.
- Alabama
Curious and Interesting Names Near Birmingham ...
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.
- Big Mound
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Mound
- Big Mound is located in Lee County
- Bonaparte
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bonaparte have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonaparte
- Bonaparte is located in Van Buren County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 405 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bonaparte <5>
- Business Corners ‑ Historic
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Business Corners have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Business Corners
- Business Corners is located in Van Buren County
- Glasgow
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast) - Harrisburg
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harrisburg have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harrisburg
- Harrisburg is located in Van Buren County
- Libertyville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Libertyville
- Libertyville is located in Jefferson County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 341 people
- Palestine ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast) - Parksville ‑ Historic
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Parksville have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parksville
- Parksville is located in Van Buren County
- Pierceville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pierceville have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pierceville
- Pierceville is located in Van Buren County
- Pleasant Hill ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
- Pleasant Hill is located in Van Buren County
- White Elm
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the west)
How Far From Birmingham to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers & Almanacs that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a city such as Birmingham to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Birmingham and extending to:
- Keosauqua, which is the Seat of Van Buren County, lies 10 miles [16.1 km]<1> to the south. If you could walk a straight line from Birmingham to Keosauqua, with an average speed<6> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take four to five hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take a little over three hours.
- Des Moines, which is the State Capital of Iowa, lies 99 miles [159.3 km] to the west northwest (WNW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than two hours, a buggy would take three full days and walking would take 6 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 800 miles [1,287.5 km] to the east (E). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 32 days and walking would take 46 days.
- The shortest distance<7> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,387 miles [10,278.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,132 miles [11,477.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,021 miles [8,080.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<10>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Birmingham. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Birmingham) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Birmingham. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.8777, Longitude: -91.9473 In this case, the coordinates for Birmingham have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <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 Mile's to see Pete ... Mile's 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 Birmingham 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 Birmingham, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <6> | 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. |
| <7> | 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 Birmingham to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 317.318 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 314.491 degrees. |
| <10> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.975 degrees. |