RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Kentucky >> Morgan County >> Ophir >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Ophir, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Ophir 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 Ophir:
    • 37.907312, -83.014335
    • 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 Ophir
  • 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 Morgan County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Morgan County
    • Since Ophir is near Johnson County and also Magoffin County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Johnson County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Magoffin 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 Ophir

Communities Also Named Ophir ...

We found eighteen communities that are also named Ophir.

Within Kentucky, the name Ophir is unique.

Beyond Kentucky, we know of eighteen communities that are located in the United States and Canada. Of these eighteen communities, sixteen are located in the United States and two are in Canada.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • DeKalb County
      • This Ophir is located in DeKalb County and lies 294 miles [473.1 km]<1> to the southwest of the Ophir that is located in Morgan County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the DeKalb County community of Ophir.
    • Alaska
      • This Ophir lies 3,418 miles [5,500.7 km]<1> to the northwest of the Ophir that is located in Morgan County.
    • Arkansas
      • Montgomery County
      • This Ophir is located in Montgomery County and lies 636 miles [1,023.5 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Ophir that is located in Morgan County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Montgomery County community of Ophir.
    • California
      • Placer County
      • This Ophir is located in Placer County and lies 2,048 miles [3,295.9 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Ophir that is located in Morgan County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Placer County community of Ophir.
    • Colorado
      • San Miguel County
      • This Ophir is located in San Miguel County and lies 1,348 miles [2,169.4 km]<1> to the west of the Ophir that is located in Morgan County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the San Miguel County community of Ophir.
    • Georgia
      • Cherokee County
      • This Ophir is located in Cherokee County and lies 256 miles [412 km]<1> to the south southwest of the Ophir that is located in Morgan County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Cherokee County community of Ophir.
    • Kansas
      • Butler 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 Ophir [Butler County].
    • Manitoba
      • This Ophir lies 1,023 miles [1,646.4 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Ophir that is located in Morgan County.
    • Montana
      • Chouteau County
      • This community is historic<3> and we have very little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Montana community of Ophir [Chouteau County].
    • Nevada
      • Nye County
      • This community is historic<3> and we have very little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Nevada community of Ophir [Nye County].
      • Ormsby County
      • This community is historic and although located in Ormsby County, we don't know where within the county.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Ormsby County community of Ophir.
      • Washoe County
      • This community is historic and although located in Washoe County, we don't know where within the county.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Washoe County community of Ophir.
    • North Carolina
      • Montgomery County
      • This Ophir is located in Montgomery County and lies 237 miles [381.4 km]<1> to the southeast of the Ophir that is located in Morgan County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Montgomery County community of Ophir.
    • Ontario
      • This Ophir lies 591 miles [951.1 km]<1> to the north of the Ophir that is located in Morgan County.
    • Oregon
      • Curry County
      • This Ophir is located in Curry County and lies 2,182 miles [3,511.6 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Ophir that is located in Morgan County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Curry County community of Ophir.
    • South Carolina
      • Berkeley 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 South Carolina community of Ophir [Berkeley County].
    • Utah
      • Tooele County
      • This Ophir is located in Tooele County and lies 1,568 miles [2,523.5 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Ophir that is located in Morgan County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Tooele County community of Ophir.
    • Washington
      • Okanogan County
      • This Ophir is located in Okanogan County and lies 1,961 miles [3,155.9 km]<1> to the northwest of the Ophir that is located in Morgan County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Okanogan County community of Ophir.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Ophir ...

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.

  • Coffee Creek
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Coffee Creek is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coffee Creek
  • Dingus
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Dingus is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dingus
  • Ever
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Ever is located in Magoffin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ever
  • Flat Fork
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Flat Fork is located in Magoffin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flat Fork
  • Grayfox
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Grayfox is located in Magoffin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grayfox
  • Lacey
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Lacey is located in Magoffin County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacey
  • Lost Creek
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Lost Creek is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lost Creek
  • Lower Sandlick
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Lower Sandlick is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lower Sandlick
  • Moon
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Moon is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moon
  • Redbush
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Redbush is located in Johnson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redbush
  • Relief
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Relief is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Relief
  • Silverhill
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Silverhill is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silverhill
  • Upper Sandlick
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Upper Sandlick is located in Morgan County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upper Sandlick

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

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

  • West Liberty, which is the Seat of Morgan County, lies 13 miles [20.9 km]<1> to the west. If you could walk a straight line from Ophir to West Liberty, with an average speed<4> 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.
  • Frankfort, which is the State Capital of Kentucky, lies 103 miles [165.8 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 4 days and walking would take 6 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 330 miles [531.1 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take five to six hours, a buggy would take 13 days and walking would take 19 days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,190 miles [9,961.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,906 miles [11,114.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,781 miles [7,694.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>'

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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Ophir) 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 Ophir 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 Ophir, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>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.
<5>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 Ophir 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 Ophir. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.9073, Longitude: -83.0143       In this case, the coordinates for Ophir have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 311.509 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 307.416 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 307.598 degrees.