RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> Commonwealth of Pennsylvania >> Washington County >> Bertha >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Bertha, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Bertha 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 Bertha:
    • 40.377569, -80.432288
    • 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.
    • Open the Heavens-Above website centered on Bertha
  • 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 Washington County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Washington County
    • Since Bertha is near Brooke County and also Hancock County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Brooke County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Hancock 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:
    • Open the Waymark.com report for Bertha

Communities Also Named Bertha ...

We found fifteen communities that are also named Bertha.

Within Pennsylvania, the name Bertha is unique.

Beyond Pennsylvania, we know of fifteen communities that are located in the United States.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • Dale County
      • This Bertha is located in Dale County and lies 670 miles [1,078.3 km]<1> to the south southwest of the Bertha that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Dale County community of Bertha.
    • Arkansas
      • Pope County
      • This Bertha is located in Pope County and lies 762 miles [1,226.3 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Bertha that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Pope County community of Bertha.
    • California
      • Lake 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 California community of Bertha [Lake County].
    • Florida
      • Seminole County
      • This Bertha is located in Seminole County and lies 813 miles [1,308.4 km]<1> to the south of the Bertha that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Seminole County community of Bertha.
    • Kentucky
      • Knox 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 Bertha [Knox County].
    • Maryland
      • Calvert County
      • This Bertha is located in Calvert County and lies 253 miles [407.2 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Bertha that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Calvert County community of Bertha.
    • Minnesota
      • Todd County
      • This Bertha is located in Todd County and lies 838 miles [1,348.6 km]<1> to the northwest of the Bertha that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Todd County community of Bertha.
    • Missouri
      • Douglas County
      • This Bertha is located in Douglas County and lies 688 miles [1,107.2 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Bertha that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Douglas County community of Bertha.
    • Nebraska
      • Burt County
      • This Bertha is located in Burt County and lies 833 miles [1,340.6 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Bertha that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Burt County community of Bertha.
    • North Carolina
      • Currituck County
      • This Bertha is located in Currituck County and lies 374 miles [601.9 km]<1> to the southeast of the Bertha that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Currituck County community of Bertha.
    • Oregon
      • Multnomah 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 Oregon community of Bertha [Multnomah County].
    • Tennessee
      • Hancock 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 Bertha [Hancock County].
    • Virginia
      • Wythe County
      • This Bertha is located in Wythe County and lies 240 miles [386.2 km]<1> to the south of the Bertha that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Wythe County community of Bertha.
    • West Virginia
      • Logan 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 West Virginia community of Bertha [Logan County].
      • Summers County
      • This Bertha is located in Summers County and lies 195 miles [313.8 km]<1> to the south of the Bertha that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Summers County community of Bertha.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Bertha ...

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.

  • Candor
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Candor is located in Washington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Candor
  • Cherry Valley
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Cherry Valley is located in Washington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Valley
  • Chestnut Hill
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Chestnut Hill is located in Hancock County (WV)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Hill
  • Cross Creek
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Cross Creek is located in Washington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cross Creek
  • Eldersville
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Eldersville is located in Washington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eldersville
  • Florence
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Florence is located in Washington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Florence
  • Logrow
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Logrow is located in Brooke County (WV)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Logrow
  • Longview Heights
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Longview Heights is located in Brooke County (WV)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longview Heights
  • Paris
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Paris is located in Washington County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paris
  • Virginville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Virginville is located in Brooke County (WV)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Virginville

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

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

  • Washington, which is the Seat of Washington County, lies 17 miles [27.4 km]<1> to the southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Bertha to Washington, with an average speed<4> 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 five to six hours.
  • Harrisburg, which is the State Capital of Pennsylvania, lies 187 miles [300.9 km] to the east (E). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take a little over three hours, a buggy would take 8 days and walking would take 11 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 207 miles [333.1 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take a little over three hours, a buggy would take 8 days and walking would take 12 days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,974 miles [9,614.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,693 miles [10,771.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,568 miles [7,351.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>'

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 from Point A (ie- Bertha) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<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 Bertha 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 Bertha, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>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.
<5>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 Bertha to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Bertha. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.3776, Longitude: -80.4323       In this case, the coordinates for Bertha have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 309.859 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.903 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 305.644 degrees.