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










Learn About
The Commemorative
Quarter for
Illinois

The Commemorative Quarter for Illinois





Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Eliza, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Eliza 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 Eliza:
    • 41.295880, -90.967602
    • 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 Eliza
  • 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 Eliza ...

We found two communities that share the name Eliza.

Within Illinois, the name Eliza is unique.

Beyond Illinois, we know of another two communities that are located throughout in the United States.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • Jackson County
      • This Eliza is located in Jackson County and lies 530 miles [853 km]<1> to the southeast of the Eliza that is located in Mercer County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jackson County community of Eliza.
    • Louisiana
      • West Baton Rouge Parish
      • This Eliza is located in West Baton Rouge Parish and lies 757 miles [1,218.3 km]<1> to the south of the Eliza that is located in Mercer County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the West Baton Rouge Parish community of Eliza.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Eliza ...

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.

  • Buffalo Prairie
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Fairport
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Fairport. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairport
    • Fairport is located in Muscatine County (IA)
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Fairport
    • From Eliza to Fairport
  • Fruitland
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Grandview
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grandview have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandview
    • Grandview is located in Louisa County (IA)
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 519 people
  • Hamlet
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hamlet have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hamlet
    • Hamlet is located in Mercer County
  • Illinois City
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Illinois City have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Illinois City
    • Illinois City is located in Rock Island County
  • Joy
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
  • Keithsburg
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
  • New Era
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Era have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Era
    • New Era is located in Muscatine County (IA)
  • Petersville
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Petersville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Petersville
    • Petersville is located in Mercer County
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Petersville
    • From Eliza to Petersville
  • Pine Mills ‑ Historic
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pine Mills have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Mills
    • Pine Mills is located in Muscatine County (IA)
  • Sugar Grove
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sugar Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Grove
    • Sugar Grove is located in Mercer County
  • Sweetland Center
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sweetland Center have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweetland Center
    • Sweetland Center is located in Muscatine County (IA)

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

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

  • Aledo, which is the Seat of Mercer County, lies 13 miles [20.9 km]<1> to the east southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Eliza to Aledo, with an average speed<5> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take 6 hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take four to five hours.
  • Springfield, which is the State Capital of Illinois, lies 125 miles [201.2 km] to the south southeast (SSE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take about two hours, a buggy would take 5 days and walking would take 8 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 753 miles [1,211.8 km] to the east (E). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 30 days and walking would take 43 days.
  • The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,331 miles [10,188.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,075 miles [11,386.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,963 miles [7,987.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Eliza. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for State of Illinois: https://illinois.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- Eliza) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Eliza. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.2959, Longitude: -90.9676    
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<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 Eliza 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 316.665 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 313.798 degrees.
<9>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.384 degrees.




 

Copyright 2025
All Rights Reserved

Thank you for visiting our website.

In closing, please keep in mind that we can not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of the information on this website, so use with care. We encourage you to double-check the information that is critical to you.

If you've found an error or have additional information that you would like to share, please don't hesitate to write: Click here to contact us.

This page was last modified/updated: 21 Apr 2025