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 The Woods (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 The Woods. 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 hospitals and 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.
The Woods is located in Butler County .
To see how the shape of Ohio's counties may have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries .
The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Butler County : Dearborn (IN) , Franklin (IN) , Union (IN) , Hamilton , Montgomery , Preble & Warren .
Below are the counties that are near The Woods. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to The Woods:
Butler County (The home county of The Woods)
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Olde West Chester (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
Olde West Chester is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olde West Chester West Chester (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
West Chester is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Chester West Chester has also been known as:
Chester Hogtown Mechanicsburg Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Chester <1>
Gano (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
Gano is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gano Wetherington (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
Wetherington is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wetherington Beckett Ridge (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
Beckett Ridge is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beckett Ridge Tylersville (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
Tylersville is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tylersville Bethany (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
Bethany is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bethany Taylor Village (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
Taylor Village is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylor Village Kyles (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
Kyles is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kyles Stockton (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
Stockton is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stockton Monroe (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
Furmandale (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
Furmandale is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Furmandale Brown County
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Vera Cruz (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
Vera Cruz is located in Brown County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vera Cruz Fayetteville (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
Saint Martin (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
Saint Martin is located in Brown County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Martin Estimated population in 2011: 128 people
Fivemile (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southeast)
Fivemile is located in Brown County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fivemile Locust Ridge (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southeast)
Locust Ridge is located in Brown County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Locust Ridge Bardwell (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)
Bardwell is located in Brown County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bardwell Mount Orab (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
Clermont County
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Branch Hill (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
Branch Hill is located in Clermont County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Branch Hill Loveland (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
Epworth Heights (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
Epworth Heights is located in Clermont County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Epworth Heights Mount Repose (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
Mount Repose is located in Clermont County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Repose Mulberry (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
Mulberry is located in Clermont County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mulberry Beechwood ‑ Historic(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
Beechwood is located in Clermont County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beechwood Day Heights (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
Mount Carmel (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
Mount Carmel is located in Clermont County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Carmel Summerside (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
Summerside is located in Clermont County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summerside Viking Village (14 miles [22.5 km] to the south)
Viking Village is located in Clermont County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Viking Village Ashdale (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
Ashdale is located in Clermont County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ashdale Williams Corners (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
Williams Corners is located in Clermont County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williams Corners Clinton County
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Blanchester (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
Clarksville (21 miles [33.8 km] to the east)
Midland (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
Midland is located in Clinton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Midland Population from the 2020 Census: 317 people
Westboro (24 miles [38.6 km] to the east)
Westboro is located in Clinton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westboro North Kingman (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
North Kingman is located in Clinton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for North Kingman New Burlington (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
New Burlington is located in Clinton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Burlington Martinsville (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
Martinsville is located in Clinton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martinsville Population from the 2020 Census: 439 people
Morrisville (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
Morrisville is located in Clinton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morrisville Wilmington (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
Greene County
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Roxanna (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
Roxanna is located in Greene County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Roxanna Bellbrook (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northeast)
Spring Valley (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northeast)
Hamilton County
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Highpoint (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
Highpoint is located in Hamilton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Highpoint Sharonville (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
Evendale (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
Loveland Park (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
Loveland Park is located in Hamilton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Loveland Park Blue Ash (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
Montgomery (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
Remington (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
Remington is located in Hamilton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Remington Glendale (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
Dillonvale (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
Dillonvale is located in Hamilton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dillonvale Kenwood (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
Kenwood is located in Hamilton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenwood Rossmoyne (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
Rossmoyne is located in Hamilton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rossmoyne Lincoln Heights (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
Lincoln Heights is located in Hamilton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln Heights Population from the 2020 Census: 3,354 people
Highland County
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Harwood (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
Harwood is located in Highland County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harwood Needfull (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southeast)
Needfull is located in Highland County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Needfull Montgomery County
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Carlisle (19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
Oakwood Village (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
Germantown (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
Miamisburg (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
Centerville (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northeast)
Farmersville (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
West Carrollton (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
Whitfield (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
Whitfield is located in Montgomery County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whitfield Moraine (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
Frytown (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
Frytown is located in Montgomery County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frytown Kettering (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
Gem City Estates (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
Gem City Estates is located in Montgomery County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gem City Estates Preble County
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
West Elkton (21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest)
Gratis (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
Camden (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
Ingomar (28 miles [45.1 km] to the north)
Ingomar is located in Preble County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ingomar Morning Sun (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
Morning Sun is located in Preble County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Morning Sun College Corner (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
Warren County
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Landen (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
Mason (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
Maineville (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
Hageman (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
Hageman is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hageman Shadow Lake Village (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
Shadow Lake Village is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shadow Lake Village Murdock (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
Murdock is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Murdock South Lebanon (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
Comargo (10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)
Comargo is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Comargo Cozaddale (11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)
Cozaddale is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cozaddale Greentree Corners (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
Greentree Corners is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greentree Corners Lebanon (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
Hunter (13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)
Hunter is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunter Williams County
Franklin (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
Franklin is located in Williams County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin Dearborn County (IN)
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
West Harrison (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
Bright (26 miles [41.8 km] to the west)
Bright is located in Dearborn County (IN) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bright Hidden Valley (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
Hidden Valley is located in Dearborn County (IN) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hidden Valley Logan (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
Logan is located in Dearborn County (IN) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Logan Greendale (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
Greendale is located in Dearborn County (IN) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greendale Population from the 2020 Census: 4,339 people
Lawrenceburg (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southwest)
Guilford (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
Franklin County (IN)
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Peoria (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
Peoria is located in Franklin County (IN) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peoria Rockdale (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
Rockdale is located in Franklin County (IN) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockdale Scipio (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
Scipio is located in Franklin County (IN) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scipio Mount Carmel (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
Mount Carmel is located in Franklin County (IN) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Carmel Population from the 2020 Census: 68 people
New Trenton (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
New Trenton is located in Franklin County (IN) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Trenton Bath (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
Bath is located in Franklin County (IN) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bath Cedar Grove (30 miles [48.3 km] to the west)
Cedar Grove is located in Franklin County (IN) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Grove Population from the 2020 Census: 153 people
Union County (IN)
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Contreras (28 miles [45.1 km] to the northwest)
Contreras is located in Union County (IN) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Contreras West College Corner (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northwest)
Boone County (KY)
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Constance (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
Constance is located in Boone County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Constance Stringtown (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
Stringtown is located in Boone County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stringtown Taylorsport (22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
Taylorsport is located in Boone County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Taylorsport Francisville (23 miles [37 km] to the southwest)
Francisville is located in Boone County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Francisville Hebron (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
Bullittsville (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
Bullittsville is located in Boone County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bullittsville Florence (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
Devon (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
Devon is located in Boone County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Devon Limaburg (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
Limaburg is located in Boone County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Limaburg Burlington (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
Idlewild (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
Idlewild is located in Boone County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Idlewild Oakbrook (27 miles [43.5 km] to the southwest)
Oakbrook is located in Boone County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakbrook Campbell County (KY)
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Dayton (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)
Woodlawn (15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)
Woodlawn is located in Campbell County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodlawn Population from the 2020 Census: 239 people
Bellevue (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)
Fort Thomas (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
Newport (16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)
Southgate (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
Silver Grove (18 miles [29 km] to the south)
Crestview (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
Crestview is located in Campbell County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crestview Population from the 2020 Census: 498 people
Highland Heights (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
Melbourne (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
Ross (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
Ross is located in Campbell County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ross Wilder (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
Kenton County (KY)
The following are listed by their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Covington (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
Kenton Hills (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
Kenton Hills is located in Kenton County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenton Hills Ludlow (17 miles [27.4 km] to the southwest)
Bromley (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
Bromley is located in Kenton County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bromley Population from the 2020 Census: 799 people
Park Hills (18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
Kenton Vale (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
Kenton Vale is located in Kenton County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kenton Vale Population from the 2020 Census: 109 people
Latonia (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
Crescent Springs (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
Fort Mitchell (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
Fort Wright (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
Villa Hills (20 miles [32.2 km] to the southwest)
Crescent Park (21 miles [33.8 km] to the southwest)
Crescent Park is located in Kenton County (KY) Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crescent Park
For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to The Woods, see our County-by-County Page for The Woods .
Cemeteries Near The Woods ...
Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of The Woods.
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 The Woods - one of the links might be able to help.
If not found below, our Cemetery List for The Woods covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.
The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Runyan Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
Smeizer Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
Cummins Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
Keltner Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
Brookside Cemetery (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
Coleman Cemetery (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
Gate of Heaven Cemetery (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
Union Cemetery (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Cemetery The Union Cemetery has also been known as:
Stewart Cemetery Symmes Twp. Cemetery Jump to Find-A-Grave: FG ID #43845 <2>
Rest Haven Memorial Park (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
United Cemetery (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
Hopewell Cemetery (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
Cline Family Cemetery (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
Continue List (566 more) ...
Rose Hill Cemetery (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
Oak Hill Cemetery (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
Plainfield Cemetery (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
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 The Woods in the Atlas, the following 1895 communities would have been found near the current location of The Woods.
These communities are listed based on their distance from The Woods, with the one closest to The Woods listed first.
Pisgah (Less than 2 miles to the north)
Pisgah is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pisgah Brecon (Less than 2 miles to the south)
Brecon is located in Hamilton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brecon Socialville (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
Socialville is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Socialville Miltomson (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
Miltomson is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Miltomson Hazelwood (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
Hazelwood is located in Hamilton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazelwood West Chester (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
West Chester is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Chester West Chester has also been known as:
Chester Hogtown Mechanicsburg Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for West Chester <1>
Gano (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
Gano is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gano Sharonville (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
Sixteen Mile Stand (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
Sixteen Mile Stand is located in Hamilton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sixteen Mile Stand Grainthorpe ‑ Historic(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
Grainthorpe is located in Hamilton County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grainthorpe Evendale (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
Twenty Mile Stand (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
Twenty Mile Stand is located in Warren County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twenty Mile Stand Continue List (13 more) ...
Mason (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
Tylersville (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
Tylersville is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tylersville Rialto (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
Rialto is located in Butler County Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rialto
We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around The Woods. See our List of 1890's Communities around The Woods .
Newspapers Published in The Woods ...
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 18 newspapers that have been published in the area around The Woods.
Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of The Woods, there are papers which were published within 9 miles [14.5 km]<4> Extended Newspaper List for The Woods.
Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
When we do our genealogical research, we begin with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites either 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 The Woods:
Websites specific to Ohio Pages specific to Butler County Genealogy information for nearby counties
Brown County Clermont County Clinton County Greene County Hamilton County Highland County Montgomery County Preble County Warren County Williams County Dearborn County Franklin County Union County Boone County Campbell County Kenton County Cemetery Information and Directories for Ohio Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for The Woods. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page .
The official website for Butler County: https://bcohio.gov/
The official website for State of Ohio: https://ohio.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 The Woods, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- The Woods) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.