Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Smyrna, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Smyrna and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Smyrna
- 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 Smyrna:
- 40.942222, -93.609661
- 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 Smyrna
- 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 Clarke County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Clarke County
- Since Smyrna is near Lucas County and also Decatur County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Lucas County
- eBird sighting report for Decatur 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 Smyrna ...
We found 37 communities that share the name Smyrna.
Within Iowa, the name Smyrna is unique.
Beyond Iowa, we know of another 37 communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alabama
- Houston County
- This Smyrna is located in Houston County and lies 813 miles [1,308.4 km]<1> to the southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Houston County community of Smyrna.
- Randolph County
- This Smyrna is located in Randolph County and lies 684 miles [1,100.8 km] to the southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Randolph County community of Smyrna.
- Arkansas
- Clark County
- This Smyrna is located in Clark County and lies 475 miles [764.4 km]<1> to the south of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Clark County community of Smyrna.
- Howard County
- This community is historic<2> and we have very little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Arkansas community of Smyrna [Howard County].
- Pope County
- This Smyrna is located in Pope County and lies 367 miles [590.6 km] to the south of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Pope County community of Smyrna.
- White County
- This Smyrna is located in White County and lies 404 miles [650.2 km] to the south southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the White County community of Smyrna.
- California
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Cobb County
- This Smyrna is located in Cobb County and lies 696 miles [1,120.1 km]<1> to the southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Cobb County community of Smyrna.
- Morgan County
- This Smyrna is located in Morgan County and lies 755 miles [1,215.1 km] to the southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Morgan County community of Smyrna.
- Indiana
- Decatur County
- This Smyrna is located in Decatur County and lies 449 miles [722.6 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Decatur County community of Smyrna.
- Jefferson County
- This Smyrna is located in Jefferson County and lies 455 miles [732.3 km] to the east southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jefferson County community of Smyrna.
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Michigan
- Mississippi
- Attala County
- This Smyrna is located in Attala County and lies 594 miles [956 km]<1> to the south southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Attala County community of Smyrna.
- Copiah County
- This Smyrna is located in Copiah County and lies 649 miles [1,044.5 km] to the south southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Copiah County community of Smyrna.
- Nebraska
- New York
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- South Carolina
- Newberry County
- This Smyrna is located in Newberry County and lies 796 miles [1,281 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Newberry County community of Smyrna.
- York County
- This Smyrna is located in York County and lies 777 miles [1,250.5 km] to the east southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the York County community of Smyrna.
- Tennessee
- Carroll County
- This Smyrna is located in Carroll County and lies 447 miles [719.4 km]<1> to the southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Carroll County community of Smyrna.
- Marshall County
- This Smyrna is located in Marshall County and lies 526 miles [846.5 km] to the southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Marshall County community of Smyrna.
- Pickett County
- This Smyrna is located in Pickett County and lies 545 miles [877.1 km] to the east southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Pickett County community of Smyrna.
- Rutherford County
- This Smyrna is located in Rutherford County and lies 513 miles [825.6 km] to the southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Rutherford County community of Smyrna.
- Warren County
- This Smyrna is located in Warren County and lies 563 miles [906.1 km] to the southeast of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Warren County community of Smyrna.
- Texas
- Cass County
- This Smyrna is located in Cass County and lies 543 miles [873.9 km]<1> to the south of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Cass County community of Smyrna.
- Harrison County
- This Smyrna is located in Harrison County and lies 570 miles [917.3 km] to the south of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Harrison County community of Smyrna.
- Montague County
- This Smyrna is located in Montague County and lies 562 miles [904.5 km] to the south southwest of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Montague County community of Smyrna.
- Rains County
- This Smyrna is located in Rains County and lies 571 miles [918.9 km] to the south southwest of the Smyrna that is located in Clarke County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Rains County community of Smyrna.
- Virginia
- Washington
- Alabama
Curious and Interesting Names Near Smyrna ...
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.
- Derby
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east) - Garden Grove
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Garden Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden Grove
- Garden Grove is located in Decatur County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 200 people
- Groveland ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west) - High Point
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for High Point have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Point
- High Point is located in Decatur County
- Jay
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north) - Last Chance
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Last Chance have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Last Chance
- Last Chance is located in Lucas County
- Le Roy
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south) - Leslie
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west) - Lucas
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
How Far From Smyrna 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 community such as Smyrna to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Smyrna and extending to:
- Osceola, which is the Seat of Clarke County, lies 10 miles [16.1 km]<1> to the northwest. If you could walk a straight line from Smyrna to Osceola, with an average speed<5> 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 45 miles [72.4 km] to the north (N). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take most of two days and walking would take about three full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 887 miles [1,427.5 km] to the east (E). Driving would take most of two days, a buggy would take 35 days and walking would take 51 days.
- The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,442 miles [10,367.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,190 miles [11,571.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,083 miles [8,180.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Smyrna. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Clarke County: www.clarkecountyia.org/
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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Smyrna) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Smyrna. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.9422, Longitude: -93.6097 In this case, the coordinates for Smyrna have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <2> | 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 Smyrna, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | 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 Smyrna 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. |
| <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 Smyrna 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 318.456 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 315.808 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 311.798 degrees. |