RoadsideThoughts
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Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Williamson, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Williamson and the surrounding area.

  • Weather ...
  • 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 Williamson:
    • 39.853296, -77.799491
    • 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 Williamson
  • 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 Williamson ...

We found twelve communities that share the name Williamson.

There is one other community in Pennsylvania which is also named Williamson.

Beyond Pennsylvania, we know of another eleven communities that are located throughout in the United States.

  • Communities Located In Pennsylvania ...
    • Delaware 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 Pennsylvania community of Williamson [Delaware County].
  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Arizona
      • Yavapai County
      • This Williamson is located in Yavapai County and lies 1,929 miles [3,104.4 km]<2> to the west of the Williamson that is located in Franklin County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Yavapai County community of Williamson.
    • Arkansas
      • Sevier County
      • This Williamson is located in Sevier County and lies 997 miles [1,604.5 km]<2> to the west southwest of the Williamson that is located in Franklin County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Sevier County community of Williamson.
    • Georgia
      • Pike County
      • This Williamson is located in Pike County and lies 586 miles [943.1 km]<2> to the southwest of the Williamson that is located in Franklin County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Pike County community of Williamson.
    • Illinois
      • Madison County
      • This Williamson is located in Madison County and lies 640 miles [1,030 km]<2> to the west of the Williamson that is located in Franklin County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Madison County community of Williamson.
    • Iowa
      • Adams County
      • This Williamson is located in Adams County and lies 883 miles [1,421.1 km]<2> to the west northwest of the Williamson that is located in Franklin County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Adams County community of Williamson.
      • Lucas County
      • This Williamson is located in Lucas County and lies 815 miles [1,311.6 km] to the west of the Williamson that is located in Franklin County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lucas County community of Williamson.
    • Louisiana
      • Saint Landry Parish
      • 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 Louisiana community of Williamson [Saint Landry Parish].
    • Michigan
      • Manistee 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 Michigan community of Williamson [Manistee County].
    • New York
      • Wayne County
      • This Williamson is located in Wayne County and lies 234 miles [376.6 km]<2> to the north of the Williamson that is located in Franklin County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Wayne County community of Williamson.
    • Texas
      • Travis County
      • This Williamson is located in Travis County and lies 1,308 miles [2,105 km]<2> to the west southwest of the Williamson that is located in Franklin County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Travis County community of Williamson.
    • West Virginia
      • Mingo County
      • This Williamson is located in Mingo County and lies 283 miles [455.4 km]<2> to the west southwest of the Williamson that is located in Franklin County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Mingo County community of Williamson.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Williamson ...

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.

  • Cashtown
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Clay Hill
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clay Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clay Hill
    • Clay Hill is located in Franklin County
  • Claylick
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Claylick have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Claylick
    • Claylick is located in Franklin County
  • Cove Gap
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cove Gap
    • Cove Gap is located in Franklin County
  • Dickey
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dickey have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dickey
    • Dickey is located in Franklin County
  • Dutchtown
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dutchtown have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dutchtown
    • Dutchtown is located in Franklin County
  • Edenville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Edenville have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edenville
    • Edenville is located in Franklin County
  • Franklin Furnace
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Franklin Furnace have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin Furnace
    • Franklin Furnace is located in Franklin County
  • Greencastle
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Continue List   (6 more) ...
    • Marion
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marion
      • Marion is located in Franklin County
    • Pleasant View
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant View have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant View
      • Pleasant View is located in Franklin County
    • Rockdale
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rockdale have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockdale
      • Rockdale is located in Franklin County
    • Social Island
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Social Island have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Social Island
      • Social Island is located in Franklin County
    • Turkeyfoot
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Turkeyfoot have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turkeyfoot
      • Turkeyfoot is located in Franklin County
    • Welsh Run
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Welsh Run have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Welsh Run
      • Welsh Run is located in Franklin County

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

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

  • Chambersburg, which is the Seat of Franklin County, lies 9 miles [14.5 km]<2> to the northeast. If you could walk a straight line from Williamson to Chambersburg, with an average speed<6> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take four to five hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take a little over three hours.
  • Harrisburg, which is the State Capital of Pennsylvania, lies 56 miles [90.1 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take over two days and walking would take most of three days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 77 miles [123.9 km] to the south southeast (SSE). Driving would take less than two hours, a buggy would take most of three days and walking would take 5 days.
  • The shortest distance<7> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,889 miles [9,477.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,600 miles [10,621.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,475 miles [7,201.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<10>

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

The official website for Franklin County: www.co.franklin.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 Rock Creek to see Pete ... Rock 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 Williamson 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>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- Williamson) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Williamson. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 39.8533, Longitude: -77.7995    
<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 Williamson, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<4>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<5>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.
<6>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.
<7>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 Williamson to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 308.283 degrees.
<9>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 304.033 degrees.
<10>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 304.671 degrees.









 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024