RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Mississippi >> Wayne County >> Gretna >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Gretna, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Gretna 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 Gretna:
    • 31.759603, -88.501971
    • 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 Gretna
  • 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 Wayne County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Wayne County
    • Since Gretna is near Choctaw County and also Washington County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Choctaw County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Washington 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 Gretna

Communities Also Named Gretna ...

We found thirteen communities that are also named Gretna.

Within Mississippi, the name Gretna is unique.

Beyond Mississippi, we know of thirteen communities that are located in the United States and Canada. Of these thirteen communities, eleven are located in the United States and two are in Canada.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Florida
      • Gadsden County
      • This Gretna is located in Gadsden County and lies 240 miles [386.2 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Gretna that is located in Wayne County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Gadsden County community of Gretna.
    • Illinois
      • DuPage County
      • This Gretna is located in DuPage County and lies 700 miles [1,126.5 km]<1> to the north of the Gretna that is located in Wayne County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the DuPage County community of Gretna.
    • Kansas
      • Phillips County
      • This Gretna is located in Phillips County and lies 814 miles [1,310 km]<1> to the northwest of the Gretna that is located in Wayne County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Phillips County community of Gretna.
    • Louisiana
      • Jefferson Parish
      • This Gretna is located in Jefferson Parish and lies 157 miles [252.7 km]<1> to the southwest of the Gretna that is located in Wayne County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jefferson Parish community of Gretna.
    • Manitoba
      • This Gretna lies 1,280 miles [2,060 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Gretna that is located in Wayne County.
    • Missouri
      • Taney County
      • This Gretna is located in Taney County and lies 434 miles [698.5 km]<1> to the northwest of the Gretna that is located in Wayne County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Taney County community of Gretna.
    • Nebraska
      • Sarpy County
      • This Gretna is located in Sarpy County and lies 776 miles [1,248.9 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Gretna that is located in Wayne County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Sarpy County community of Gretna.
    • New York
      • Dutchess County
      • This Gretna is located in Dutchess County and lies 1,063 miles [1,710.7 km]<1> to the northeast of the Gretna that is located in Wayne County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Dutchess County community of Gretna.
    • Ohio
      • Logan County
      • This Gretna is located in Logan County and lies 646 miles [1,039.6 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Gretna that is located in Wayne County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Logan County community of Gretna.
    • Ontario
      • This Gretna lies 1,060 miles [1,705.9 km]<1> to the north northeast of the Gretna that is located in Wayne County.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Washington County
      • This Gretna is located in Washington County and lies 742 miles [1,194.1 km]<1> to the northeast of the Gretna that is located in Wayne County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Washington County community of Gretna.
    • South Dakota
      • Edmunds County
      • This Gretna is located in Edmunds County and lies 1,114 miles [1,792.8 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Gretna that is located in Wayne County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Edmunds County community of Gretna.
    • Virginia
      • Pittsylvania County
      • This Gretna is located in Pittsylvania County and lies 631 miles [1,015.5 km]<1> to the northeast of the Gretna that is located in Wayne County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Pittsylvania County community of Gretna.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Gretna ...

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.

  • Chapel Hill
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Chapel Hill is located in Washington County (AL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapel Hill
  • Gilbertown
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Gin ‑ Historic
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Gin is located in Clarke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gin
  • Healing Springs
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Healing Springs is located in Washington County (AL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Healing Springs
  • Horn
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Horn is located in Clarke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horn
  • Junction City
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Junction City is located in Clarke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Junction City
  • Melvin
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
    • Melvin is located in Choctaw County (AL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melvin
  • Pierces Springs ‑ Historic
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Pierces Springs is located in Clarke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pierces Springs
  • Rescueville
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
    • Rescueville is located in Choctaw County (AL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rescueville
  • Robinsons Junction
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Robinsons Junction is located in Wayne County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robinsons Junction
  • Shady Grove
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Shady Grove is located in Washington County (AL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shady Grove
  • Threadville
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Threadville is located in Clarke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Threadville
  • Water Valley
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Water Valley is located in Choctaw County (AL)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Water Valley

How Far From Gretna to ...

We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers & Almanacs that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as Gretna to various places of note, such as the White House.

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

  • Waynesboro, which is the Seat of Wayne County, lies 10 miles [16.1 km]<1> to the southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Gretna to Waynesboro, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take four to five hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take a little over three hours.
  • Jackson, which is the State Capital of Mississippi, lies 105 miles [169 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 5 days and walking would take 6 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 811 miles [1,305.2 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 32 days and walking would take 46 days.
  • The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,707 miles [10,793.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,414 miles [11,931.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,291 miles [8,515 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>'

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Gretna) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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.
<4>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 Gretna 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 Gretna. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 31.7596, Longitude: -88.5020       In this case, the coordinates for Gretna have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<5>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 314.565 degrees.
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 310.076 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 311.316 degrees.