RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
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The Commemorative
Quarter for
Indiana

The Commemorative Quarter for Indiana





Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in West Union, we use the following websites to find information relevant to West Union 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 West Union:
    • 39.844276, -87.336231
    • 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 West Union
  • 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 West Union ...

We found 22 communities that share the name West Union.

Within Indiana, the name West Union is unique.

Beyond Indiana, we know of another 22 communities that are located throughout in the United States.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Illinois
      • Clark County
      • This West Union is located in Clark County and lies 46 miles [74 km]<1> to the south southwest of the West Union that is located in Parke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Clark County community of West Union.
    • Iowa
      • Fayette County
      • This West Union is located in Fayette County and lies 316 miles [508.6 km]<1> to the northwest of the West Union that is located in Parke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fayette County community of West Union.
      • Tama 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 Iowa community of West Union [Tama County].
    • Kansas
      • Norton County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<3> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of West Union [Norton County].
      • Phillips 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 West Union [Phillips County].
      • Washington 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 West Union [Washington County].
    • Minnesota
      • Carver County
      • This community is historic<2> and although located in Carver County, we don't know where within the county.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Carver County community of West Union.
      • Todd County
      • This West Union is located in Todd County and lies 568 miles [914.1 km]<1> to the northwest of the West Union that is located in Parke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Todd County community of West Union.
    • Mississippi
      • Union County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<3> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Mississippi community of West Union [Union County].
    • Missouri
      • Cass County
      • This community is historic<2> and although located in Cass County, we don't know where within the county.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Cass County community of West Union.
    • Nebraska
      • Custer 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 Nebraska community of West Union [Custer County].
    • New York
      • Steuben County
      • This West Union is located in Steuben County and lies 524 miles [843.3 km]<1> to the east northeast of the West Union that is located in Parke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Steuben County community of West Union.
    • Ohio
      • Adams County
      • This West Union is located in Adams County and lies 215 miles [346 km]<1> to the east southeast of the West Union that is located in Parke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Adams County community of West Union.
      • Hancock 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 Ohio community of West Union [Hancock County].
      • Monroe County
      • This community is historic and although located in Monroe County, we don't know where within the county.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Monroe County community of West Union.
    • Oregon
      • Washington County
      • This West Union is located in Washington County and lies 1,831 miles [2,946.7 km]<1> to the west northwest of the West Union that is located in Parke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Washington County community of West Union.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Greene County
      • This West Union is located in Greene County and lies 374 miles [601.9 km]<1> to the east of the West Union that is located in Parke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Greene County community of West Union.
    • South Carolina
      • Oconee County
      • This West Union is located in Oconee County and lies 422 miles [679.1 km]<1> to the southeast of the West Union that is located in Parke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Oconee County community of West Union.
    • Tennessee
      • Shelby County
      • This West Union is located in Shelby County and lies 340 miles [547.2 km]<1> to the south southwest of the West Union that is located in Parke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Shelby County community of West Union.
      • Weakley County
      • This West Union is located in Weakley County and lies 255 miles [410.4 km] to the south southwest of the West Union that is located in Parke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Weakley County community of West Union.
    • West Virginia
      • Doddridge County
      • This West Union is located in Doddridge County and lies 351 miles [564.9 km]<1> to the east of the West Union that is located in Parke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Doddridge County community of West Union.
      • Pocahontas County
      • This West Union is located in Pocahontas County and lies 400 miles [643.7 km] to the east southeast of the West Union that is located in Parke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Pocahontas County community of West Union.

Curious and Interesting Names Near West Union ...

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.

  • Arabia
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arabia have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arabia
    • Arabia is located in Parke County
  • Coke Oven Hollow
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coke Oven Hollow have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coke Oven Hollow
    • Coke Oven Hollow is located in Parke County
  • Early Station
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Early Station have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Early Station
    • Early Station is located in Vermillion County
  • Highland
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Highland have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highland
    • Highland is located in Vermillion County
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Highland <5>
  • Howard
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Howard have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howard
    • Howard is located in Parke County
  • Montezuma
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montezuma have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montezuma
    • Montezuma is located in Parke County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 977 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Montezuma <5>
  • Montezuma Station
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montezuma Station have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montezuma Station
    • Montezuma Station is located in Vermillion County
  • Pottertown ‑ Historic
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pottertown have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pottertown
    • Pottertown is located in Parke County
  • Rockport
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rockport have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockport
    • Rockport is located in Parke County

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

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

  • Rockville, which is the Seat of Parke County, lies just to the Southeast.
  • Indianapolis, which is the State Capital of Indiana, lies 62 miles [99.8 km]<1> to the east (E). If you could walk a straight line from West Union to Indianapolis, with an average speed<6> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of three days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take about three full days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 553 miles [890 km] to the east (E). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take just over a day, a buggy would take 22 days and walking would take 32 days.
  • The shortest distance<7> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,269 miles [10,089 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,002 miles [11,268.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,880 miles [7,853.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<10>

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

The official website for State of Indiana: https://www.in.gov

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- West Union) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in West Union. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 39.8443, Longitude: -87.3362    
<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 West Union, 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 West Union 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'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 West Union 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 314.237 degrees.
<9>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 310.816 degrees.
<10>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 308.996 degrees.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024