RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Louisiana >> Rapides Parish >> Alexandria >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Alexandria, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Alexandria 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 Alexandria:
    • 31.304934, -92.454463
    • 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 Alexandria
  • 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 parish-by-parish basis. We have selected Rapides Parish as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Rapides Parish
    • Since Alexandria is near Grant Parish and also Avoyelles Parish, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Grant Parish
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Avoyelles Parish
  • 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 Alexandria

Communities Also Named Alexandria ...

We found 24 communities that are also named Alexandria.

Within Louisiana, the name Alexandria is unique.

Beyond Louisiana, we know of 24 communities that are located in the United States and Canada. Of these 24 communities, 21 are located in the United States and three are in Canada.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • Calhoun County
      • This Alexandria is located in Calhoun County and lies 418 miles [672.7 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Calhoun County community of Alexandria.
    • British Columbia
      • This Alexandria lies 2,102 miles [3,382.8 km]<1> to the northwest of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
    • Georgia
      • Elbert 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 Georgia community of Alexandria [Elbert County].
    • Indiana
      • Madison County
      • This Alexandria is located in Madison County and lies 724 miles [1,165.2 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Madison County community of Alexandria.
    • Kansas
      • Leavenworth 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 Alexandria [Leavenworth County].
    • Kentucky
      • Campbell County
      • This Alexandria is located in Campbell County and lies 697 miles [1,121.7 km]<1> to the northeast of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Campbell County community of Alexandria.
      • Kenton County
      • This Alexandria is located in Kenton County and lies 688 miles [1,107.2 km] to the northeast of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Kenton County community of Alexandria.
    • Manitoba
      • 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 Manitoba community of Alexandria.
    • Minnesota
      • Douglas County
      • This Alexandria is located in Douglas County and lies 1,018 miles [1,638.3 km]<1> to the north of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Douglas County community of Alexandria.
    • Missouri
      • Callaway County
      • This community is historic<3> and although located in Callaway County, we don't know where within the parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Callaway County community of Alexandria.
      • Clark County
      • This Alexandria is located in Clark County and lies 627 miles [1,009.1 km]<1> to the north of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Clark County community of Alexandria.
      • Lincoln County
      • This community is historic and although located in Lincoln County, we don't know where within the parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lincoln County community of Alexandria.
    • Nebraska
      • Thayer County
      • This Alexandria is located in Thayer County and lies 676 miles [1,087.9 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Thayer County community of Alexandria.
    • New Hampshire
      • Grafton County
      • This Alexandria is located in Grafton County and lies 1,409 miles [2,267.6 km]<1> to the northeast of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Grafton County community of Alexandria.
    • New Jersey
      • Essex 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 Alexandria [Essex County].
    • Ohio
      • Licking County
      • This Alexandria is located in Licking County and lies 819 miles [1,318.1 km]<1> to the northeast of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Licking County community of Alexandria.
      • Ross County
      • This community is historic<3> and although located in Ross County, we don't know where within the parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Ross County community of Alexandria.
      • Scioto County
      • This Alexandria is located in Scioto County and lies 737 miles [1,186.1 km] to the northeast of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Scioto County community of Alexandria.
    • Ontario
      • This Alexandria lies 1,360 miles [2,188.7 km]<1> to the northeast of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Huntingdon County
      • This Alexandria is located in Huntingdon County and lies 1,023 miles [1,646.4 km]<1> to the northeast of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Huntingdon County community of Alexandria.
    • South Dakota
      • Hanson County
      • This Alexandria is located in Hanson County and lies 900 miles [1,448.4 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Hanson County community of Alexandria.
    • Tennessee
      • DeKalb County
      • This Alexandria is located in DeKalb County and lies 494 miles [795 km]<1> to the northeast of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the DeKalb County community of Alexandria.
    • Virginia
      • Alexandria City
      • This Alexandria is located in Alexandria City and lies 1,011 miles [1,627 km]<1> to the northeast of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Alexandria City community of Alexandria.
      • Virginia Beach City
      • This Alexandria is located in Virginia Beach City and lies 1,002 miles [1,612.6 km] to the east northeast of the Alexandria that is located in Rapides Parish.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Virginia Beach City community of Alexandria.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Alexandria ...

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.

  • Cloverdale
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Cloverdale is located in Rapides Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cloverdale
  • Graham ‑ Historic
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Graham is located in Rapides Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graham
  • Kent
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Kent is located in Rapides Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kent
  • Kingsville
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Kingsville is located in Rapides Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsville
  • Lee Heights
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
    • Lee Heights is located in Rapides Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lee Heights
  • Paradise
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Paradise is located in Rapides Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise
  • Samtown
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Samtown is located in Rapides Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Samtown
  • Shady Oaks
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Shady Oaks is located in Rapides Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shady Oaks
  • Timber Trails
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Timber Trails is located in Rapides Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timber Trails
  • Willow Glen
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Willow Glen is located in Rapides Parish
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Glen

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

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

  • Baton Rouge, which is the State Capital of Louisiana, lies 97 miles [156.1 km]<1> to the southeast (SE). If you could drive a straight line from Alexandria to Baton Rouge, with an average speed<4>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take less than two hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 6 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take three full days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 1,014 miles [1,631.9 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take over two days, a buggy would take 40 days and walking would take 58 days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,892 miles [11,091.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,609 miles [12,245.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,484 miles [8,825.6 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- Alexandria) 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 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 Alexandria 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 parish. 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 Alexandria, 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 Alexandria 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 Alexandria. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 31.3049, Longitude: -92.4545    
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 316.945 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 312.786 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 312.976 degrees.