RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
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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 Union Center, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Union Center 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 Union Center:
    • 39.333022, -88.083089
    • 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 Union Center
  • 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 Union Center ...

We found thirteen communities that share the name Union Center.

Within Illinois, the name Union Center is unique.

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

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Indiana
      • LaPorte County
      • This Union Center is located in LaPorte County and lies 166 miles [267.2 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Union Center that is located in Cumberland County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the LaPorte County community of Union Center.
    • Iowa
      • Plymouth County
      • This Union Center is located in Plymouth County and lies 475 miles [764.4 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Union Center that is located in Cumberland County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Plymouth County community of Union Center.
    • Kansas
      • Elk 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 Union Center [Elk County].
      • Wilson 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 Union Center [Wilson County].
    • Nebraska
      • Gage County
      • This community is historic<3> and although located in Gage County, we don't know where within the county.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Gage County community of Union Center.
    • New Jersey
      • Union 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 New Jersey community of Union Center [Union County].
    • New York
      • Broome County
      • This Union Center is located in Broome County and lies 657 miles [1,057.3 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Union Center that is located in Cumberland County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Broome County community of Union Center.
      • Ulster County
      • This Union Center is located in Ulster County and lies 757 miles [1,218.3 km] to the east northeast of the Union Center that is located in Cumberland County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Ulster County community of Union Center.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Tioga County
      • This Union Center is located in Tioga County and lies 605 miles [973.7 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Union Center that is located in Cumberland County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Tioga County community of Union Center.
    • South Dakota
      • Meade County
      • This Union Center is located in Meade County and lies 829 miles [1,334.1 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Union Center that is located in Cumberland County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Meade County community of Union Center.
    • Texas
      • Eastland County
      • This Union Center is located in Eastland County and lies 783 miles [1,260.1 km]<1> to the southwest of the Union Center that is located in Cumberland County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Eastland County community of Union Center.
    • Washington
      • Whitman County
      • This Union Center is located in Whitman County and lies 1,551 miles [2,496.1 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Union Center that is located in Cumberland County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Whitman County community of Union Center.
    • Wisconsin
      • Juneau County
      • This Union Center is located in Juneau County and lies 320 miles [515 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Union Center that is located in Cumberland County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Juneau County community of Union Center.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Union Center ...

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.

  • Casey
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Greenup
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
  • Halls Ford
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Halls Ford have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halls Ford
    • Halls Ford is located in Coles County
  • Hazel Dell
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazel Dell
    • Hazel Dell is located in Cumberland County
  • Janesville
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Janesville have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Janesville
    • Janesville is located in Cumberland County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Janesville <4>
  • Liberty Hill
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Liberty Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty Hill
    • Liberty Hill is located in Cumberland County
  • Maple Point
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Maple Point have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Point
    • Maple Point is located in Cumberland County
  • Martinsville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Martinsville have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsville
    • Martinsville is located in Clark County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,076 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Martinsville <4>
  • Oilfield
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oilfield
    • Oilfield is located in Clark County
  • Rocky Ford
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rocky Ford have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Ford
    • Rocky Ford is located in Cumberland County
  • Timothy
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Timothy have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timothy
    • Timothy is located in Cumberland County

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

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

  • Toledo, which is the Seat of Cumberland County, lies 9 miles [14.5 km]<1> to the west southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Union Center to Toledo, 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.
  • Springfield, which is the State Capital of Illinois, lies 89 miles [143.2 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 most of three days and walking would take 5 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 592 miles [952.7 km] to the east (E). Driving would take just over a day, a buggy would take 24 days and walking would take 34 days.
  • The shortest distance<7> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,322 miles [10,174.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,055 miles [11,353.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,934 miles [7,940.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<10>

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Union Center. 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 from Point A (ie- Union Center) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Union Center. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 39.3330, Longitude: -88.0831    
<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 Union Center 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 Union Center, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<5>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.
<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 Union Center 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 314.714 degrees.
<9>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 311.29 degrees.
<10>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 309.483 degrees.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024