RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
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The Commemorative Quarter for North Dakota







Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Drake, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Drake 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 Drake:
    • 47.921947, -100.376249
    • 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 Drake
  • 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 Drake ...

We found 21 communities that share the name Drake.

Within North Dakota, the name Drake is unique.

Beyond North Dakota, we know of another 21 communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these 21 communities, nineteen are located in the United States and two are in Canada.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Arizona
      • Mohave County
      • This Drake is located in Mohave County and lies 1,135 miles [1,826.6 km]<1> to the southwest of the Drake that is located in McHenry County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Mohave County community of Drake.
      • Yavapai County
      • This Drake is located in Yavapai County and lies 1,085 miles [1,746.1 km] to the southwest of the Drake that is located in McHenry County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Yavapai County community of Drake.
    • California
      • Santa Barbara County
      • This Drake is located in Santa Barbara County and lies 1,383 miles [2,225.7 km]<1> to the southwest of the Drake that is located in McHenry County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Santa Barbara County community of Drake.
    • Colorado
      • Larimer County
      • This Drake is located in Larimer County and lies 572 miles [920.5 km]<1> to the south southwest of the Drake that is located in McHenry County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Larimer County community of Drake.
    • Illinois
      • Greene 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 Illinois community of Drake [Greene County].
    • Kansas
      • Jackson 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 Drake [Jackson County].
      • Ness 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 Kansas community of Drake [Ness County].
    • Kentucky
      • Warren County
      • This Drake is located in Warren County and lies 1,042 miles [1,676.9 km]<1> to the southeast of the Drake that is located in McHenry County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Warren County community of Drake.
    • Manitoba
      • We haven't found the location of this community yet.
    • Michigan
      • Lapeer 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 Drake [Lapeer County].
    • Missouri
      • Gasconade County
      • This Drake is located in Gasconade County and lies 790 miles [1,271.4 km]<1> to the southeast of the Drake that is located in McHenry County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Gasconade County community of Drake.
      • Saint Louis 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 Missouri community of Drake [Saint Louis County].
    • North Carolina
      • Nash County
      • This Drake is located in Nash County and lies 1,410 miles [2,269.2 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Drake that is located in McHenry County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Nash County community of Drake.
    • Ohio
      • Defiance 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 Ohio community of Drake [Defiance County].
      • Muskingum County
      • This Drake is located in Muskingum County and lies 1,060 miles [1,705.9 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Drake that is located in McHenry County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Muskingum County community of Drake.
    • Oklahoma
      • Murray County
      • This Drake is located in Murray County and lies 950 miles [1,528.9 km]<1> to the south of the Drake that is located in McHenry County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Murray County community of Drake.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Lawrence County
      • This Drake is located in Lawrence County and lies 1,095 miles [1,762.2 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Drake that is located in McHenry County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lawrence County community of Drake.
    • Saskatchewan
      • This Drake lies 335 miles [539.1 km]<1> to the northwest of the Drake that is located in McHenry County.
    • South Carolina
      • Abbeville County
      • This Drake is located in Abbeville County and lies 1,318 miles [2,121.1 km]<1> to the southeast of the Drake that is located in McHenry County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Abbeville County community of Drake.
      • Marlboro County
      • This Drake is located in Marlboro County and lies 1,413 miles [2,274 km] to the southeast of the Drake that is located in McHenry County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Marlboro County community of Drake.
    • Tennessee
      • Davidson 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 Tennessee community of Drake [Davidson County].

Curious and Interesting Names Near Drake ...

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.

  • Harvey
    (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harvey have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvey
    • Harvey is located in Wells County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,587 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Harvey <4>
  • Lincoln Valley
    (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lincoln Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln Valley
    • Lincoln Valley is located in Sheridan County
  • Martin
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Martin have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martin
    • Martin is located in Sheridan County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 67 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Martin <4>
  • Towner
    (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
  • Voltaire
    (22 miles [35.4 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Voltaire have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Voltaire
    • Voltaire is located in McHenry County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 44 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Voltaire <4>

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

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

  • Towner, which is the Seat of McHenry County, lies 29 miles [46.7 km]<1> to the north. If you could walk a straight line from Drake to Towner, with an average speed<5> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take just about two full days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take just over a day.
  • Bismarck, which is the State Capital of North Dakota, lies 79 miles [127.1 km] to the south southwest (SSW). 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 White House (Washington, DC) is 1,318 miles [2,121.1 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take about three full days, a buggy would take 52 days and walking would take 75 days.
  • The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,278 miles [10,103.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,044 miles [11,336.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,999 miles [8,045.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Drake. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for State of North Dakota: www.nd.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Drake) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Drake. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 47.9219, Longitude: -100.3762       In this case, the coordinates for Drake have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Drake 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>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.
<4>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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 Drake 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 323.506 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 322.468 degrees.
<9>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 313.977 degrees.









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024