Our Genealogy Helper
Introduction ...
We have a couple of goals for our Gazetteer:
That it be a tool which helps us with planning our trips.
We're trying to shape our Gazetteer as a tool to help us understand the community in which our ancestors lived, the community that was part of their daily lives.
On our trips, we try to visit those places where our ancestors left their footprints.
By learning about Harmonyvale (and the surrounding area) during the time that our ancestors lived, we hope to have a better understanding of both their community and its relationship to their lifes. We hope that this tool helps to give us an insight into their world.
As we add data and organize our Gazetteer to help with our family research, we will be adding to this our Genealogical Helper for Harmonyvale. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.
Neighboring Counties ...
When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.
For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the northeast corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the east. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the north.
So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived: their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the east contained birth and death records; the county to the north contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.
If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.
Harmonyvale is located in Sussex County .
To see how the shape of New Jersey's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries .
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Sussex County : Morris , Passaic , Warren , Orange (NY) , Monroe (PA) & Pike (PA) .
Below are the counties that are near Harmonyvale. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Harmonyvale:
Sussex County (The home county of Harmonyvale)
The following are listed by their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Beaver Run (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
Beaver Run is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Run Roys (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
Roys is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roys Pellettown (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
Pellettown is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pellettown Armstrong (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
Armstrong is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Armstrong Hardistonville (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
Hardistonville is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hardistonville McCoys Corner (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
McCoys Corner is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for McCoys Corner Wykertown (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
Wykertown is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wykertown Ross Corner (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
Ross Corner is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ross Corner Augusta (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
Augusta is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Augusta Libertyville (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
Libertyville is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Libertyville Washingtonville (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
Washingtonville is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Washingtonville Edison (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
Edison is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edison Balesville (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
Balesville is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Balesville Bergen County
The following are listed by their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Campgaw (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
Campgaw is located in Bergen County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Campgaw Ackermans Mills (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
Ackermans Mills is located in Bergen County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ackermans Mills Mahwah (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
Mahwah is located in Bergen County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mahwah Wyckoff (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
Wyckoff is located in Bergen County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyckoff Wortendyke (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
Wortendyke is located in Bergen County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wortendyke Ho-Ho-Kus (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
Ho-Ho-Kus is located in Bergen County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ho-Ho-Kus Ridgewood (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
Ridgewood is located in Bergen County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridgewood Population from the 2020 Census: 24,915 people
Radburn (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
Radburn is located in Bergen County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Radburn Essex County
The following are listed by their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Fairfield (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
Fairfield is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairfield West Caldwell (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
West Caldwell is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Caldwell Caldwell (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
Caldwell is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caldwell Borough of Essex Fells (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
Borough of Essex Fells is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borough of Essex Fells Estimated population in 2015: 2,159 people
Essex Fells (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
Essex Fells is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Essex Fells Population from the 2020 Census: 2,071 people
Meadow Village (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
Meadow Village is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadow Village Cedar Grove (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
Cedar Grove is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Grove Livingston (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
Livingston is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Livingston Montclair Heights (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
Montclair Heights is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montclair Heights Upper Montclair (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
Upper Montclair is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Upper Montclair Verona (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
Verona is located in Essex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Verona Hunterdon County
The following are listed by their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Farmersville (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
Farmersville is located in Hunterdon County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farmersville Pottersville (30 miles [48.3 km] to the south)
Pottersville is located in Hunterdon County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pottersville Morris County
The following are listed by their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Weldon (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
Weldon is located in Morris County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weldon Woodport (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
Woodport is located in Morris County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodport Hurdtown (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
Hurdtown is located in Morris County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hurdtown Newfoundland (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
Newfoundland is located in Morris County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newfoundland Lake Telemark (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
Lake Telemark is located in Morris County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Telemark Hibernia (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
Hibernia is located in Morris County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hibernia Hilltown (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
Hilltown is located in Morris County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hilltown Lyonsville (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
Lyonsville is located in Morris County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyonsville White Meadow Lake (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)
White Meadow Lake is located in Morris County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Meadow Lake Dover (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
Dover is located in Morris County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dover Population from the 2020 Census: 17,619 people
Mine Hill (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
Mine Hill is located in Morris County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mine Hill Butler (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
Butler is located in Morris County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Butler Budd Lake (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
Budd Lake is located in Morris County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Budd Lake Passaic County
The following are listed by their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
West Milford (14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)
West Milford is located in Passaic County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Milford Macopin (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
Macopin is located in Passaic County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Macopin Haskell (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
Haskell is located in Passaic County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haskell Wayne (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
Wayne is located in Passaic County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wayne Preakness (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
Preakness is located in Passaic County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Preakness Singac (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southeast)
Singac is located in Passaic County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Singac Little Falls (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
Little Falls is located in Passaic County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Falls Paterson (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
Paterson is located in Passaic County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paterson Population from the 2020 Census: 144,801 people
The Village at Little Falls (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
Borough of Woodland Park (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
Borough of Woodland Park is located in Passaic County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Borough of Woodland Park Population from the 2020 Census: 12,655 people
Somerset County
Gladstone (29 miles [46.7 km] to the south)
Gladstone is located in Somerset County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gladstone Warren County
The following are listed by their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Millbrook ‑ Historic(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
Millbrook is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millbrook Long Bridge (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
Long Bridge is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Long Bridge Allamuchy - Panther Valley (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
Paulina (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
Paulina is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paulina Blairstown (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
Blairstown is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blairstown Hackettstown (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
Hackettstown is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hackettstown Population from the 2020 Census: 9,372 people
Hope (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
Hope is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hope Vail (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
Vail is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vail Vienna (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
Vienna is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vienna Mount Hermon (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
Mount Hermon is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Hermon Beattystown (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
Beattystown is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beattystown Hainesburg (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
Hainesburg is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hainesburg Karrsville (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
Karrsville is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Karrsville Orange County (NY)
The following are listed by their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Unionville (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
Amity (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
Amity is located in Orange County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amity Newport (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
Newport is located in Orange County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newport Pine Island (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
Pine Island is located in Orange County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Island Edenville (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast)
Edenville is located in Orange County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edenville Port Jervis (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
Sterling Forest (16 miles [25.7 km] to the east)
Warwick (16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
Shin Hollow (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
Shin Hollow is located in Orange County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shin Hollow South Centerville (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
South Centerville is located in Orange County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Centerville Big Island (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
Big Island is located in Orange County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Big Island Homestead Village (17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)
Homestead Village is located in Orange County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homestead Village Greenwood Lake (18 miles [29 km] to the east)
Rockland County (NY)
The following are listed by their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Sloatsburg (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
Hillburn (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
Ramapo (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
Ramapo is located in Rockland County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramapo Suffern (25 miles [40.2 km] to the east)
Montebello (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
Montebello is located in Rockland County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montebello Population from the 2020 Census: 4,579 people
Airmont (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
Airmont is located in Rockland County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Airmont Population from the 2020 Census: 8,767 people
Tallman (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
Viola (28 miles [45.1 km] to the east)
Viola is located in Rockland County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Viola Kaser (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
Kaser is located in Rockland County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kaser Population from the 2020 Census: 5,439 people
Monsey (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
Wesley Hills (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
Wesley Hills is located in Rockland County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wesley Hills Population from the 2020 Census: 5,919 people
Chestnut Ridge (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
Hillcrest (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
Hillcrest is located in Rockland County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillcrest Sullivan County (NY)
The following are listed by their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Pond Eddy (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
Barryville (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
Bloomingburg (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
Eldred (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
Wurtsboro (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
Yankee Lake (30 miles [48.3 km] to the north)
Yankee Lake is located in Sullivan County (NY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yankee Lake Yulan (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
Monroe County (PA)
The following are listed by their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Bushkill (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
Shoemakers (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
Shoemakers is located in Monroe County (PA) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shoemakers Coolbaugh (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
Coolbaugh is located in Monroe County (PA) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coolbaugh Delaware Water Gap (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
East Stroudsburg (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
Stroudsburg (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
Northampton County (PA)
The following are listed by their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Portland (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
Portland is located in Northampton County (PA) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Portland Population from the 2020 Census: 512 people
Slateford (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
Slateford is located in Northampton County (PA) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slateford Pike County (PA)
The following are listed by their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Conashaugh (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)
Conashaugh is located in Pike County (PA) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Conashaugh Milford (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
Delaware (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
Delaware is located in Pike County (PA) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delaware Matamoras (15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)
Egypt Mills (16 miles [25.7 km] to the west)
Egypt Mills is located in Pike County (PA) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Egypt Mills Millrift (18 miles [29 km] to the north)
Millrift is located in Pike County (PA) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Millrift Parkers Glen (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
Parkers Glen is located in Pike County (PA) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Parkers Glen Lords Valley (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
Lackawaxen (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
Rowland (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Harmonyvale, see our County-by-County Page for Harmonyvale .
Cemeteries Near Harmonyvale ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Harmonyvale.
This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know . If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.
Although we don't have the information ourselves, if you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our list of websites on our Genealogy Helper Page for Harmonyvale - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for Harmonyvale covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Hardyston Cemetery (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
Immaculate Conception Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
Vaughn Cemetery (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
St. Thomas Cemetery (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
Deckertown Cemetery (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
Union Cemetery (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
Fairview Cemetery (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
Branchville Cemetery (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
Clove Cemetery (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
Wantage Cemetery (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
Newton Cemetery (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Newton Cemetery To give a relative sense of its location, the Newton Cemetery is a large cemetery that is located in Newton . Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #100140 <2>
Holland Cemetery (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)
Continue List (206 more) ...
Canistear Cemetery (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
St. Joseph Cemetery (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
Headley Cemetery (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
Nearby Communities in 1895 ...
We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<3>
While we didn't find Harmonyvale in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of Harmonyvale.
These communities are listed based on their distance from Harmonyvale, with the one closest to Harmonyvale listed first.
Beaver Run (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
Beaver Run is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Run Roys (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
Roys is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roys Monroe (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
Monroe is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monroe Pellettown (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
Pellettown is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pellettown Armstrong (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
Armstrong is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Armstrong Hardistonville (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
Hardistonville is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hardistonville Martins (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
Martins is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martins Lewisburg (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
Lewisburg is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewisburg Wykertown (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
Wykertown is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wykertown Plains (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
Plains is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plains Augusta (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
Augusta is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Augusta Lafayette (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
Lafayette is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lafayette Continue List (14 more) ...
Papakating (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
Papakating is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Papakating Northrup (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
Northrup is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Northrup Branchville Junction (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
Branchville Junction is located in Sussex County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Branchville Junction
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Harmonyvale. See our List of 1890's Communities around Harmonyvale .
Newspapers Published in Harmonyvale ...
An ongoing effort between the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has resulted in the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP) .
To share their results, the partnership has created the Chronicling America website. The goal of this partnership is to assemble a database about the current and historic newspapers of the United States. This includes a growing collection of scanned images from selected papers. All of it available to the public on their website.
Using information that we've taken from the Chronicling America website, we've identified 34 newspapers that have been published in the area around Harmonyvale.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Harmonyvale, there are papers which were published within 14 miles [22.5 km]<4> Extended Newspaper List for Harmonyvale.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These helpful websites offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.
To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Harmonyvale:
Websites specific to New Jersey Pages specific to Sussex County Genealogy information for nearby counties
Bergen County Essex County Hunterdon County Morris County Passaic County Somerset County Warren County Orange County Rockland County Sullivan County Monroe County Northampton County Pike County Cemetery Information and Directories for New Jersey Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Harmonyvale. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page .
The official website for Sussex County: https://sussex.nj.us/
The official website for State of New Jersey: https://www.nj.gov/
Footnotes ...
<1> While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com . 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 Harmonyvale, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Harmonyvale) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.