RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Illinois >> Cook County >> Driftwood >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Driftwood, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Driftwood 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 Driftwood:
    • 42.120278, -87.795833
    • 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 Driftwood
  • 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 Cook County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Cook County
    • Since Driftwood is near Lake County and also DuPage County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Lake County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for DuPage 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 Driftwood

Communities Also Named Driftwood ...

We found twelve communities that are also named Driftwood.

Within Illinois, the name Driftwood is unique.

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

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • Jefferson County
      • This Driftwood is located in Jefferson County and lies 594 miles [956 km]<1> to the south of the Driftwood that is located in Cook County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jefferson County community of Driftwood.
    • Arkansas
      • Lawrence County
      • This Driftwood is located in Lawrence County and lies 463 miles [745.1 km]<1> to the south southwest of the Driftwood that is located in Cook County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lawrence County community of Driftwood.
    • Florida
      • Broward 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 Florida community of Driftwood [Broward County].
    • Kansas
      • Rawlins 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 Driftwood [Rawlins County].
    • New York
      • Chautauqua County
      • This Driftwood is located in Chautauqua County and lies 433 miles [696.8 km]<1> to the east of the Driftwood that is located in Cook County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Chautauqua County community of Driftwood.
    • Ohio
      • Ashtabula County
      • This Driftwood is located in Ashtabula County and lies 349 miles [561.7 km]<1> to the east of the Driftwood that is located in Cook County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Ashtabula County community of Driftwood.
    • Oklahoma
      • Alfalfa County
      • This Driftwood is located in Alfalfa County and lies 668 miles [1,075 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Driftwood that is located in Cook County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Alfalfa County community of Driftwood.
    • Ontario
      • This Driftwood lies 574 miles [923.8 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Driftwood that is located in Cook County.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Cameron County
      • This Driftwood is located in Cameron County and lies 500 miles [804.7 km]<1> to the east of the Driftwood that is located in Cook County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Cameron County community of Driftwood.
    • Tennessee
      • Sullivan County
      • This Driftwood is located in Sullivan County and lies 485 miles [780.5 km]<1> to the southeast of the Driftwood that is located in Cook County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Sullivan County community of Driftwood.
    • Texas
      • Hays County
      • This Driftwood is located in Hays County and lies 1,004 miles [1,615.8 km]<1> to the southwest of the Driftwood that is located in Cook County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Hays County community of Driftwood.
    • West Virginia
      • Pocahontas 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 Driftwood [Pocahontas County].

Curious and Interesting Names Near Driftwood ...

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.

  • Birch Pond
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Birch Pond is located in Cook County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Birch Pond
  • Buttonwood
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Buttonwood is located in Cook County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buttonwood
  • Charring Cross
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Charring Cross is located in Cook County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Charring Cross
  • Cobblewood
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Cobblewood is located in Cook County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cobblewood
  • Colonial Village
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Colonial Village is located in Cook County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Colonial Village
  • Covenant Village
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Covenant Village is located in Cook County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Covenant Village
  • Fair Meadows
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Fair Meadows is located in Cook County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fair Meadows
  • Fair Oaks
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Fair Oaks is located in Cook County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fair Oaks
  • Fox Hedge
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Fox Hedge is located in Cook County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox Hedge
  • Fox Run
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Fox Run is located in Cook County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox Run
  • Heathercrest
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Heathercrest is located in Cook County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heathercrest
  • Lakeview
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Lakeview is located in Cook County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeview
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Lane Park
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Lane Park is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lane Park
    • Lee Woods
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Lee Woods is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lee Woods
    • Mallard Creek
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Mallard Creek is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mallard Creek
    • Maple Ridge
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Maple Ridge is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Ridge
    • Meadow Green
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Meadow Green is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadow Green
    • Royal Court
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Royal Court is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royal Court
    • Royal Ridge
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
      • Royal Ridge is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Royal Ridge
    • Solar Grove
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Solar Grove is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Solar Grove
    • Sun Ridge
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
      • Sun Ridge is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sun Ridge
    • Sunset Court
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Sunset Court is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Court
    • Sunset Fields
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Sunset Fields is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Fields
    • Sycamore Lane
      (Less than 2 miles to the west)
      • Sycamore Lane is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sycamore Lane
    • Thorn Hill
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Thorn Hill is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thorn Hill
    • Timber Ridge
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Timber Ridge is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timber Ridge
    • Willow Cove
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Willow Cove is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Cove
    • Willow Creek
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Willow Creek is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Creek
    • Willow Wood
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Willow Wood is located in Cook County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Wood

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

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

  • Chicago, which is the Seat of Cook County, lies 18 miles [29 km]<1> to the south southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Driftwood to Chicago, 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 five to six hours.
  • Springfield, which is the State Capital of Illinois, lies 188 miles [302.6 km] to the south southwest (SSW). 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 11 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 606 miles [975.3 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take just over a day, a buggy would take 24 days and walking would take 35 days.
  • The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,176 miles [9,939.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,916 miles [11,130.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,801 miles [7,726.5 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- Driftwood) 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 Driftwood 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 Driftwood 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 Driftwood. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.1203, Longitude: -87.7958       In this case, the coordinates for Driftwood have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<5>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 314.543 degrees.
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 311.487 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 308.577 degrees.