Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Bells, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Bells and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Bells
- 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 Bells:
- 40.254794, -79.261978
- 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 Bells
- 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 Westmoreland County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Westmoreland County
- Since Bells is near Somerset County and also Fayette County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Somerset County
- eBird sighting report for Fayette 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 Bells ...
We found eleven communities that share the name Bells.
Within Pennsylvania, the name Bells is unique.
Beyond Pennsylvania, we know of another eleven communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alabama
- Kentucky
- Mississippi
- Lee County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Mississippi community of Bells [Lee County].
- Noxubee County
- This community is historic<2> and we have very little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Mississippi community of Bells [Noxubee County].
- Oktibbeha County
- This Bells is located in Oktibbeha County and lies 704 miles [1,133 km]<3> to the southwest of the Bells that is located in Westmoreland County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Oktibbeha County community of Bells.
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Virginia
Curious and Interesting Names Near Bells ...
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.
- Buttermilk Falls
(Less than 2 miles to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Buttermilk Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buttermilk Falls
- Buttermilk Falls is located in Westmoreland County
- California Furnace
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for California Furnace have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for California Furnace
- California Furnace is located in Westmoreland County
- Dorothy
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest) - Hillside
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north) - Hillsview
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east) - Idlepark
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest) - Longbridge
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Longbridge have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longbridge
- Longbridge is located in Westmoreland County
- Mansville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest) - Oak Grove
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
- Oak Grove is located in Westmoreland County
- Peanut
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest) - Pleasant Grove
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Grove
- Pleasant Grove is located in Westmoreland County
How Far From Bells to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as Bells to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Bells and extending to:
- Greensburg, which is the Seat of Westmoreland County, lies 14 miles [22.5 km]<3> to the west northwest. If you could walk a straight line from Bells to Greensburg, with an average speed<5> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take four to five hours.
- Harrisburg, which is the State Capital of Pennsylvania, lies 125 miles [201.2 km] to the east (E). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take about two hours, a buggy would take 5 days and walking would take 8 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 151 miles [243 km] to the southeast (SE). Driving would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 6 days and walking would take 9 days.
- The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,932 miles [9,546.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,648 miles [10,698.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,523 miles [7,279.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Bells. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Westmoreland County: www.co.westmoreland.pa.us/
The official website for State of Pennsylvania: https://www.pa.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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 Mile's to see Pete ... Mile's 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 Bells 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. |
| <2> | 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 Bells, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Bells) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Bells. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.2548, Longitude: -79.2620 In this case, the coordinates for Bells have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <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 Bells 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 309.146 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.074 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 305.164 degrees. |