RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Maryland >> Cecil County >> Charlestown >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Charlestown, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Charlestown 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 Charlestown:
    • 39.576907, -75.978675
    • 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 Charlestown
  • 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 Cecil County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Cecil County
    • Since Charlestown is near Harford County and also New Castle County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Harford County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for New Castle 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 Charlestown

Communities Also Named Charlestown ...

We found fifteen communities that are also named Charlestown.

There are two communities within Maryland that are also named Charlestown.

Beyond Maryland, we know of thirteen communities that are located in the United States.

  • Communities Located In Maryland ...
    • Allegany County
      • This Charlestown is located in Allegany County and lies 159 miles [255.9 km]<1> to the west of the Charlestown that is located in Cecil County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Allegany County community of Charlestown.
    • Baltimore County
      • This Charlestown is located in Baltimore County and lies 44 miles [70.8 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Charlestown that is located in Cecil County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Baltimore County community of Charlestown.
  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Indiana
      • Clark County
      • This Charlestown is located in Clark County and lies 525 miles [844.9 km]<1> to the west of the Charlestown that is located in Cecil County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Clark County community of Charlestown.
    • Kansas
      • Doniphan 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 Charlestown [Doniphan County].
    • Kentucky
      • Mason County
      • Although located in Mason County, we don't know the location within the county.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Mason County community of Charlestown.
    • Massachusetts
      • Suffolk County
      • This Charlestown is located in Suffolk County and lies 320 miles [515 km]<1> to the northeast of the Charlestown that is located in Cecil County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Suffolk County community of Charlestown.
    • Nebraska
      • York 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 Nebraska community of Charlestown [York County].
    • New Hampshire
      • Sullivan County
      • This Charlestown is located in Sullivan County and lies 312 miles [502.1 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Charlestown that is located in Cecil County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Sullivan County community of Charlestown.
    • New Jersey
      • Hunterdon County
      • This Charlestown is located in Hunterdon County and lies 93 miles [149.7 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Charlestown that is located in Cecil County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Hunterdon County community of Charlestown.
    • Ohio
      • Portage County
      • This Charlestown is located in Portage County and lies 293 miles [471.5 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Charlestown that is located in Cecil County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Portage County community of Charlestown.
    • Oregon
      • Umatilla County
      • This Charlestown is located in Umatilla County and lies 2,211 miles [3,558.3 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Charlestown that is located in Cecil County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Umatilla County community of Charlestown.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Armstrong County
      • This Charlestown is located in Armstrong County and lies 197 miles [317 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Charlestown that is located in Cecil County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Armstrong County community of Charlestown.
      • Chester County
      • This Charlestown is located in Chester County and lies 42 miles [67.6 km] to the north northeast of the Charlestown that is located in Cecil County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Chester County community of Charlestown.
      • Franklin County
      • This Charlestown is located in Franklin County and lies 105 miles [169 km] to the west northwest of the Charlestown that is located in Cecil County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Franklin County community of Charlestown.
    • Rhode Island
      • Washington County
      • This Charlestown is located in Washington County and lies 259 miles [416.8 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Charlestown that is located in Cecil County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Washington County community of Charlestown.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Charlestown ...

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.

  • Carpenter Point
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Carpenter Point is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carpenter Point
  • Chestnut Point
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Chestnut Point is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Point
  • Elk Neck
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Elk Neck is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Neck
  • Indian Falls
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Indian Falls is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Falls
  • Joy Haven
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Joy Haven is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joy Haven
  • Leslie
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Leslie is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leslie
  • Mechanic Valley
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Mechanic Valley is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mechanic Valley
  • Mountain Hill
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Mountain Hill is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Hill
  • Poplar Point
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Poplar Point is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poplar Point
  • Prestige Village
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Prestige Village is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prestige Village
  • Quails Nest
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Quails Nest is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quails Nest
  • Red Point
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Red Point is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Point
  • Timberbrook
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Timberbrook is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timberbrook
  • Town Commons
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Town Commons is located in Cecil County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Town Commons

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

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

  • Elkton, which is the Seat of Cecil County, lies just to the East Northeast.
  • Annapolis, which is the State Capital of Maryland, lies 49 miles [78.9 km]<1> to the southwest (SW). If you could walk a straight line from Charlestown to Annapolis, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take about three full days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take most of two days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 73 miles [117.5 km] to the southwest (SW). 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 shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,824 miles [9,372.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,529 miles [10,507.4 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,406 miles [7,090.8 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<8>'

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Charlestown) 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 Mile's to see Pete ... Mile's 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 Charlestown 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 Charlestown, 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 Charlestown 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 Charlestown. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 39.5769, Longitude: -75.9787       In this case, the coordinates for Charlestown have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 307.217 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 302.78 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 303.998 degrees.