Welcome to Orion ...
Orion is located in Ashe County<1>.
Google driving directions from your current location to Orion
We aren't confident of the location of Orion, so consider the above location to be an estimate.<2>
While we don't have a date for the founding of Orion, you might consider that their post office opened in 1899.
Orion is 2,790 feet [850 m] above sea level.<3> In other words, the altitude of Orion is about ½ mile above sea level.
Time Zone: Orion lies in the Eastern Time Zone (EST/EDT) and observes daylight saving time
Area Codes for Orion: 336 & 743<4>
Communities Also Named Orion ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 13 communities that are also named Orion - they are located in Alabama, Alberta, Arkansas, California, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas (2), Minnesota, Mississippi, Nevada, Oklahoma and Wisconsin.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Orion.
Communities near Orion ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Orion.
- Boone
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Boone have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boone
- Boone is located in Watauga County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 20,003 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Boone <6>
- Sparta
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sparta have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sparta
- Sparta is located in Alleghany County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,723 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sparta <6>
- Jefferson
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jefferson
- Jefferson is located in Ashe County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,534 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Jefferson <6>
Google driving directions:
From your current location to Jefferson
From Orion to Jefferson
- Trade
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trade
- Trade is located in Johnson County (TN)
- Estimated population in 2014: 1,441 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Trade <6>
Google driving directions:
From your current location to Trade
From Orion to Trade
- West Jefferson
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for West Jefferson have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Jefferson
- West Jefferson is located in Ashe County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,313 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Jefferson <6>
- Dowell ‑ Historic
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west) - Lansing
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lansing
- Lansing is located in Ashe County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 154 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lansing <6>
Google driving directions:
From your current location to Lansing
From Orion to Lansing
- Glendale Springs
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Glendale Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glendale Springs
- Glendale Springs is located in Ashe County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Glendale Springs <6>
- Obids
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south) - Transou
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Transou. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Transou
- Transou is located in Ashe County
Google driving directions:
From your current location to Transou
From Orion to Transou
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Orion. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Orion.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Orion. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Orion.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Orion. See our Newspapers Page for Orion.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Orion ...
Looking for more information about Orion? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
While we are unaware of a Tourism page that is specific to Orion, there are neighboring communities that do have Tourism pages. A map of those communities can be found with our TripAdvisor Page for Orion.
Adding Orion to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Orion in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Orion was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<7>
From that list, the Orion post office opened in 1899.
We also found Orion on a map titled Rand McNally Map of North Carolina (1911).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Orion.
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Orion. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Ashe County: www.ashecountygov.com/
The official website for State of North Carolina: https://www.nc.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of North Carolina's counties, including Ashe, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace. |
| <3> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Orion - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <4> | When there's a risk of an area code running out of phone numbers, an 'Overlay Area Code' is created that has the same geographic boundaries as the existing area code. In this case, the 336 code has been Overlayed with the 743 area code. New phone numbers in the Orion area will be assigned with one of these codes: 336 or 743. As a result, placing a call in the Orion area will require 10-digit dialing (where you enter both the area code and then the phone number). |
| <5> | 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. |
| <6> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <7> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |