Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Grafton, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Grafton and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Grafton
- 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 Grafton:
- 38.969820, -90.435283
- 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 Grafton
- 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 Jersey County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Jersey County
- Since Grafton is near Saint Charles County and also Calhoun County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Saint Charles County
- eBird sighting report for Calhoun 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 Grafton ...
We found 29 communities that share the name Grafton.
Within Illinois, the name Grafton is unique.
Beyond Illinois, we know of another 29 communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these 29 communities, 26 are located in the United States and five are in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alabama
- California
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Chautauqua County
- This Grafton is located in Chautauqua County and lies 333 miles [535.9 km]<2> to the west southwest of the Grafton that is located in Jersey County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Chautauqua County community of Grafton.
- Wabaunsee County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of Grafton [Wabaunsee County].
- Kentucky
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Montana
- Nebraska
- New Brunswick
- This Grafton lies 1,264 miles [2,034.2 km]<2> to the east northeast of the Grafton that is located in Jersey County.
- New Hampshire
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Dakota
- Nova Scotia
- This Grafton lies 1,379 miles [2,219.3 km]<2> to the east northeast of the Grafton that is located in Jersey County.
- Ohio
- Ontario
- Pennsylvania
- Huntingdon County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Pennsylvania community of Grafton [Huntingdon County].
- Indiana County
- This Grafton is located in Indiana County and lies 604 miles [972 km]<2> to the east northeast of the Grafton that is located in Jersey County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Indiana County community of Grafton.
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Middlesex County
- This Grafton is located in Middlesex County and lies 762 miles [1,226.3 km]<2> to the east of the Grafton that is located in Jersey County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Middlesex County community of Grafton.
- York County
- This Grafton is located in York County and lies 768 miles [1,236 km] to the east of the Grafton that is located in Jersey County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the York County community of Grafton.
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
Curious and Interesting Names Near Grafton ...
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.
- Black Walnut
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Black Walnut have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Black Walnut
- Black Walnut is located in Saint Charles County (MO)
- Centerville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Centerville have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centerville
- Centerville is located in Calhoun County
- Deer Plain
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Deer Plain have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Plain
- Deer Plain is located in Calhoun County
- Democrat Spring
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Democrat Spring have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Democrat Spring
- Democrat Spring is located in Jersey County
- Golden Eagle
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Golden Eagle
- Golden Eagle is located in Calhoun County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Golden Eagle <5>
- Lockhaven
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east) - Marshall Landing
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marshall Landing have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marshall Landing
- Marshall Landing is located in Calhoun County
- Orchard Farm
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orchard Farm have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard Farm
- Orchard Farm is located in Saint Charles County (MO)
- Otterville
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Otterville have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otterville
- Otterville is located in Jersey County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 116 people
- Rosedale
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest) - Seeburger
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
How Far From Grafton 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 city such as Grafton to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Grafton and extending to:
- Jerseyville, which is the Seat of Jersey County, lies 11 miles [17.7 km]<2> to the north northeast. If you could walk a straight line from Grafton to Jerseyville, with an average speed<6> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take five to six hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take nearly four hours.
- Springfield, which is the State Capital of Illinois, lies 69 miles [111 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than two hours, a buggy would take about three full days and walking would take three full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 719 miles [1,157.1 km] to the east (E). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 28 days and walking would take 41 days.
- The shortest distance<7> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,429 miles [10,346.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,165 miles [11,530.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,046 miles [8,120.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<10>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Grafton. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of Illinois: https://illinois.gov
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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 Grafton 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. |
| <2> | 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- Grafton) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Grafton. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 38.9698, Longitude: -90.4353 |
| <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 Grafton, 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 Grafton 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 316.242 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 312.996 degrees. |
| <10> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.682 degrees. |