Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Somerville, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Somerville and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Somerville
- 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 Somerville:
- 42.386908, -71.098712
- 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 Somerville
- 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 Middlesex County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Middlesex County
- Since Somerville is near Suffolk County and also Norfolk County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Suffolk County
- eBird sighting report for Norfolk 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 Somerville ...
We found seventeen communities that share the name Somerville.
Within Massachusetts, the name Somerville is unique.
Beyond Massachusetts, we know of another seventeen communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these seventeen communities, sixteen are located in the United States and one is in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alabama
- Morgan County
- This Somerville is located in Morgan County and lies 1,007 miles [1,620.6 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Somerville that is located in Middlesex County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Morgan County community of Somerville.
- Indiana
- Gibson County
- This Somerville is located in Gibson County and lies 900 miles [1,448.4 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Somerville that is located in Middlesex County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Gibson County community of Somerville.
- 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 Somerville [Leavenworth County].
- Maine
- Lincoln County
- This Somerville is located in Lincoln County and lies 155 miles [249.4 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Somerville that is located in Middlesex County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lincoln County community of Somerville.
- Mississippi
- Leflore County
- This Somerville is located in Leflore County and lies 1,194 miles [1,921.6 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Somerville that is located in Middlesex County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Leflore County community of Somerville.
- Missouri
- Clinton County
- Although located in Clinton County, we don't know the location within the county.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Clinton County community of Somerville.
- New Brunswick
- This Somerville lies 322 miles [518.2 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Somerville that is located in Middlesex County.
- New Jersey
- Somerset 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 Somerville [Somerset County].
- New York
- Queens County
- This Somerville is located in Queens County and lies 186 miles [299.3 km]<1> to the southwest of the Somerville that is located in Middlesex County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Queens County community of Somerville.
- Saint Lawrence County
- This Somerville is located in Saint Lawrence County and lies 259 miles [416.8 km] to the west northwest of the Somerville that is located in Middlesex County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Saint Lawrence County community of Somerville.
- Ohio
- Butler County
- This Somerville is located in Butler County and lies 731 miles [1,176.4 km]<1> to the west of the Somerville that is located in Middlesex County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Butler County community of Somerville.
- Pennsylvania
- Armstrong County
- This Somerville is located in Armstrong County and lies 451 miles [725.8 km]<1> to the west of the Somerville that is located in Middlesex County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Armstrong County community of Somerville.
- Philadelphia 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 Pennsylvania community of Somerville [Philadelphia County].
- Tioga 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 Pennsylvania community of Somerville [Tioga County].
- Tennessee
- Fayette County
- This Somerville is located in Fayette County and lies 1,095 miles [1,762.2 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Somerville that is located in Middlesex County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fayette County community of Somerville.
- Texas
- Burleson County
- This Somerville is located in Burleson County and lies 1,630 miles [2,623.2 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Somerville that is located in Middlesex County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Burleson County community of Somerville.
- Virginia
- Fauquier County
- This Somerville is located in Fauquier County and lies 433 miles [696.8 km]<1> to the southwest of the Somerville that is located in Middlesex County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fauquier County community of Somerville.
- Alabama
Curious and Interesting Names Near Somerville ...
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.
- Boston
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boston
- Boston is located in Suffolk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 691,531 people
- Chestnut Hill
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chestnut Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Hill
- Chestnut Hill is located in Middlesex County
- Cottage Park
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cottage Park have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottage Park
- Cottage Park is located in Suffolk County
- Crescent Beach
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Crescent Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crescent Beach
- Crescent Beach is located in Suffolk County
- Downtown Crossing
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Downtown Crossing have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Downtown Crossing
- Downtown Crossing is located in Suffolk County
- Everett
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Everett
- Everett is located in Middlesex County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 46,107 people
- Fells
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north) - Fort Independence
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fort Independence have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Independence
- Fort Independence is located in Suffolk County
- Grove Hall
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grove Hall have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grove Hall
- Grove Hall is located in Suffolk County
- Longwood Station
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Longwood Station have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longwood Station
- Longwood Station is located in Norfolk County
- Maplewood
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast) - Meeting House Hill
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Meeting House Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meeting House Hill
- Meeting House Hill is located in Suffolk County
- Continue List (5 more) ...
- Oak Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north) - Reservoir
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest) - Strawberry Hill
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Strawberry Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Strawberry Hill
- Strawberry Hill is located in Middlesex County
- Winter Hill
(Less than 2 miles to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Winter Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winter Hill
- Winter Hill is located in Middlesex County
- Wyoming
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
- Oak Grove
How Far From Somerville 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 city such as Somerville to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Somerville and extending to:
- Cambridge, which is the Seat of Middlesex County, lies just to the Southwest.
- Boston, which is the State Capital of Massachusetts, lies just to the southeast (SE).
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 393 miles [632.5 km]<1> to the southwest (SW). If you could drive a straight line from Somerville to White House, with an average speed<5>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take most of a day to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 23 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 16 days.
- The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,504 miles [8,857.8 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,211 miles [9,995.6 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<8>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,088 miles [6,579 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<9>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Somerville: www.ci.somerville.ma.us/
The official website for State of Massachusetts: https://www.mass.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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- Somerville) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Somerville. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.3869, Longitude: -71.0987 |
| <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 Somerville 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 Somerville, 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 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. |
| <6> | 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 Somerville to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 303.995 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 299.597 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 300.575 degrees. |