Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Shelby, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Shelby and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Shelby
- 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 Shelby:
- 35.291944, -81.540252
- 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 Shelby
- 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 Cleveland County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Cleveland County
- Since Shelby is near Gaston County and also Cherokee County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Gaston County
- eBird sighting report for Cherokee 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 Shelby ...
We found 23 communities that share the name Shelby.
Within North Carolina, the name Shelby is unique.
Beyond North Carolina, we know of another 23 communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alabama
- Indiana
- Fountain 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 Indiana community of Shelby [Fountain County].
- Lake County
- This Shelby is located in Lake County and lies 514 miles [827.2 km]<1> to the northwest of the Shelby that is located in Cleveland County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lake County community of Shelby.
- Iowa
- Kentucky
- Jefferson 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 Kentucky community of Shelby [Jefferson County].
- Pike County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kentucky community of Shelby [Pike County].
- Michigan
- Allegan 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 Michigan community of Shelby [Allegan County].
- Macomb 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 Michigan community of Shelby [Macomb County].
- Oceana County
- This Shelby is located in Oceana County and lies 629 miles [1,012.3 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Shelby that is located in Cleveland County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Oceana County community of Shelby.
- Mississippi
- Bolivar County
- This Shelby is located in Bolivar County and lies 532 miles [856.2 km]<1> to the west of the Shelby that is located in Cleveland County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Bolivar County community of Shelby.
- Claiborne 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 Mississippi community of Shelby [Claiborne County].
- Missouri
- Linn County
- This Shelby is located in Linn County and lies 705 miles [1,134.6 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Shelby that is located in Cleveland County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Linn County community of Shelby.
- Oregon County
- This Shelby is located in Oregon County and lies 564 miles [907.7 km] to the west northwest of the Shelby that is located in Cleveland County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Oregon County community of Shelby.
- Montana
- Nebraska
- New York
- Ohio
- Oregon
- South Dakota
- Texas
- Virginia
- Madison County
- This Shelby is located in Madison County and lies 275 miles [442.6 km]<1> to the northeast of the Shelby that is located in Cleveland County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Madison County community of Shelby.
- Montgomery 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 Virginia community of Shelby [Montgomery County].
- Wisconsin
Curious and Interesting Names Near Shelby ...
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.
- Dover
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west) - Elizabeth City
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elizabeth City have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elizabeth City
- Elizabeth City is located in Cleveland County
- Landsdown
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east) - Light Oak
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east) - Pleasant Hill
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
- Pleasant Hill is located in Cleveland County
- Poplar Springs
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Poplar Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poplar Springs
- Poplar Springs is located in Cleveland County
- Rocky Brook
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rocky Brook have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Brook
- Rocky Brook is located in Cleveland County
- Rollingwood
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rollingwood have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rollingwood
- Rollingwood is located in Cleveland County
- Shanghai
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest) - Sulphur Springs
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sulphur Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sulphur Springs
- Sulphur Springs is located in Cleveland County
- Zion
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
How Far From Shelby 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 Shelby to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Shelby and extending to:
- Raleigh, which is the State Capital of North Carolina, lies 166 miles [267.2 km]<1> to the east northeast (ENE). If you could drive a straight line from Shelby to Raleigh, with an average speed<5>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take about three hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 10 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 7 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 351 miles [564.9 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take five to six hours, a buggy would take 14 days and walking would take 20 days.
- The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,247 miles [10,053.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,948 miles [11,181.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,827 miles [7,768.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Shelby: www.cityofshelby.com/
The official website for Cleveland County: www.clevelandcounty.com/
The official website for State of North Carolina: https://www.nc.gov/
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 from Point A (ie- Shelby) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Shelby. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 35.2919, Longitude: -81.5403 |
| <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 Rock Creek to see Pete ... Rock 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 Shelby 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 Shelby, 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 Shelby 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 310.626 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 306.026 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 307.759 degrees. |