RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of South Carolina >> Aiken County >> The Colony >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in The Colony, we use the following websites to find information relevant to The Colony 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 The Colony:
    • 33.529302, -81.977893
    • 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 The Colony
  • 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 Aiken County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Aiken County
    • Since The Colony is near Edgefield County and also Richmond County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Edgefield County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Richmond 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 The Colony

Communities Also Named The Colony ...

We found twenty communities that are also named The Colony.

Within South Carolina, the name The Colony is unique.

Beyond South Carolina, we know of twenty communities that are located in the United States.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • Cullman County
      • This The Colony is located in Cullman County and lies 284 miles [457.1 km]<1> to the west of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Cullman County community of The Colony.
      • Talladega County
      • This The Colony is located in Talladega County and lies 242 miles [389.5 km] to the west of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Talladega County community of The Colony.
      • Tuscaloosa 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 Alabama community of The Colony [Tuscaloosa County].
    • Georgia
      • Baldwin County
      • This The Colony is located in Baldwin County and lies 80 miles [128.7 km]<1> to the west southwest of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Baldwin County community of The Colony.
    • Kansas
      • Anderson County
      • This The Colony is located in Anderson County and lies 811 miles [1,305.2 km]<1> to the west northwest of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Anderson County community of The Colony.
      • Norton 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 Kansas community of The Colony [Norton County].
    • Kentucky
      • Fayette County
      • This The Colony is located in Fayette County and lies 343 miles [552 km]<1> to the north northwest of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fayette County community of The Colony.
    • Maryland
      • Baltimore County
      • This The Colony is located in Baltimore County and lies 503 miles [809.5 km]<1> to the north northeast of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Baltimore County community of The Colony.
      • Montgomery County
      • This The Colony is located in Montgomery County and lies 469 miles [754.8 km] to the north northeast of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Montgomery County community of The Colony.
    • Missouri
      • Knox County
      • This The Colony is located in Knox County and lies 721 miles [1,160.3 km]<1> to the northwest of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Knox County community of The Colony.
    • Nevada
      • Lyon County
      • This community is historic<3> and although located in Lyon County, we don't know where within the county.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lyon County community of The Colony.
    • Oklahoma
      • Washita County
      • This The Colony is located in Washita County and lies 957 miles [1,540.1 km]<1> to the west northwest of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Washita County community of The Colony.
    • Texas
      • Blanco County
      • This community is historic<3> and although located in Blanco County, we don't know where within the county.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Blanco County community of The Colony.
      • Denton County
      • This The Colony is located in Denton County and lies 860 miles [1,384 km]<1> to the west of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Denton County community of The Colony.
      • Fayette County
      • This The Colony is located in Fayette County and lies 929 miles [1,495.1 km] to the west southwest of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fayette County community of The Colony.
      • Rains County
      • This The Colony is located in Rains County and lies 793 miles [1,276.2 km] to the west of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Rains County community of The Colony.
    • Utah
      • Weber County
      • This The Colony is located in Weber County and lies 1,720 miles [2,768.1 km]<1> to the west northwest of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Weber County community of The Colony.
    • Virginia
      • Amherst County
      • This The Colony is located in Amherst County and lies 312 miles [502.1 km]<1> to the north northeast of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Amherst County community of The Colony.
      • James City County
      • This The Colony is located in James City County and lies 390 miles [627.6 km] to the northeast of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the James City County community of The Colony.
    • Wyoming
      • Crook County
      • This The Colony is located in Crook County and lies 1,414 miles [2,275.6 km]<1> to the northwest of the The Colony that is located in Aiken County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Crook County community of The Colony.

Curious and Interesting Names Near The Colony ...

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.

  • Bonnie Glen
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Bonnie Glen is located in Aiken County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonnie Glen
  • Coventry
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Coventry is located in Aiken County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coventry
  • Crestland
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Crestland is located in Aiken County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crestland
  • Forest Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Forest Park is located in Richmond County (GA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Park
  • Greenfield
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Greenfield is located in Aiken County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield
  • Hillside Park
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Hillside Park is located in Richmond County (GA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillside Park
  • National Hills
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • National Hills is located in Richmond County (GA)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for National Hills
  • Poverty Hill
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
    • Poverty Hill is located in Edgefield County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poverty Hill
  • Rose Hill
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Rose Hill is located in Aiken County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Hill
  • Sandlewood
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Sandlewood is located in Aiken County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandlewood
  • Schultz Hill
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Schultz Hill is located in Aiken County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Schultz Hill
  • Summer Hill
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Summer Hill is located in Aiken County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Summer Hill
  • Continue List   (4 more) ...
    • Sunset Heights
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Sunset Heights is located in Aiken County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Heights
    • Willow Springs Park
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Willow Springs Park is located in Aiken County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Springs Park
    • Windtree
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Windtree is located in Aiken County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windtree
    • Woodlawn
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
      • Woodlawn is located in Aiken County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woodlawn

How Far From The Colony to ...

We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers, Almanacs & Directories that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as The Colony to various places of note, such as the White House.

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

  • Aiken, which is the Seat of Aiken County, lies 14 miles [22.5 km]<1> to the east. If you could walk a straight line from The Colony to Aiken, 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 four to five hours.
  • Columbia, which is the State Capital of South Carolina, lies 63 miles [101.4 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 about three full days and walking would take most of three days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 461 miles [741.9 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take most of a day, a buggy would take 18 days and walking would take 27 days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,345 miles [10,211.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,040 miles [11,329.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,921 miles [7,919.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>'

Footnotes ...

<1>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 from Point A (ie- The Colony) 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 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 The Colony 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 The Colony, 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 The Colony 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 The Colony. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.5293, Longitude: -81.9779       In this case, the coordinates for The Colony have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 310.851 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 306.031 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 308.416 degrees.