RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Tennessee >> Cocke County >> Jonestown >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Jonestown, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Jonestown 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 Jonestown:
    • 35.883434, -82.970703
    • 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 Jonestown
  • 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 Cocke County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Cocke County
    • Since Jonestown is near Madison County and also Greene County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Madison County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Greene 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 Jonestown

Communities Also Named Jonestown ...

We found 23 communities that are also named Jonestown.

There is one other community in Tennessee that is also named Jonestown.

Beyond Tennessee, we know of 22 communities that are located in the United States.

  • Communities Located In Tennessee ...
    • Giles County
      • This Jonestown is located in Giles County and lies 240 miles [386.2 km]<1> to the west of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Giles County community of Jonestown.
  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Georgia
      • Fannin County
      • This Jonestown is located in Fannin County and lies 100 miles [160.9 km]<1> to the southwest of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fannin County community of Jonestown.
    • Indiana
      • Vermillion County
      • This Jonestown is located in Vermillion County and lies 361 miles [581 km]<1> to the northwest of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Vermillion County community of Jonestown.
    • Kansas
      • Allen 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 Jonestown [Allen County].
    • Kentucky
      • Fayette County
      • This Jonestown is located in Fayette County and lies 167 miles [268.8 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fayette County community of Jonestown.
    • Maryland
      • Caroline County
      • This Jonestown is located in Caroline County and lies 435 miles [700.1 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Caroline County community of Jonestown.
      • Howard County
      • This Jonestown is located in Howard County and lies 408 miles [656.6 km] to the northeast of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Howard County community of Jonestown.
      • Saint Mary's County
      • This Jonestown is located in Saint Mary's County and lies 395 miles [635.7 km] to the east northeast of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Saint Mary's County community of Jonestown.
    • Mississippi
      • Alcorn County
      • This Jonestown is located in Alcorn County and lies 328 miles [527.9 km]<1> to the west of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Alcorn County community of Jonestown.
      • Coahoma County
      • This Jonestown is located in Coahoma County and lies 436 miles [701.7 km] to the west southwest of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Coahoma County community of Jonestown.
      • Warren County
      • This Jonestown is located in Warren County and lies 514 miles [827.2 km] to the west southwest of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Warren County community of Jonestown.
      • Yazoo County
      • This Jonestown is located in Yazoo County and lies 474 miles [762.8 km] to the west southwest of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Yazoo County community of Jonestown.
    • North Carolina
      • Forsyth County
      • This Jonestown is located in Forsyth County and lies 147 miles [236.6 km]<1> to the east of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Forsyth County community of Jonestown.
      • Lenoir County
      • This Jonestown is located in Lenoir County and lies 304 miles [489.2 km] to the east of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lenoir County community of Jonestown.
    • Ohio
      • Jackson County
      • This Jonestown is located in Jackson County and lies 222 miles [357.3 km]<1> to the north of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jackson County community of Jonestown.
      • Van Wert County
      • This Jonestown is located in Van Wert County and lies 347 miles [558.4 km] to the north northwest of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Van Wert County community of Jonestown.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Columbia County
      • This Jonestown is located in Columbia County and lies 510 miles [820.8 km]<1> to the northeast of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Columbia County community of Jonestown.
      • Lebanon County
      • This Jonestown is located in Lebanon County and lies 471 miles [758 km] to the northeast of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lebanon County community of Jonestown.
      • Schuylkill County
      • This Jonestown is located in Schuylkill County and lies 492 miles [791.8 km] to the northeast of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Schuylkill County community of Jonestown.
      • Washington County
      • This Jonestown is located in Washington County and lies 335 miles [539.1 km] to the north northeast of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Washington County community of Jonestown.
    • South Carolina
      • Horry County
      • This Jonestown is located in Horry County and lies 249 miles [400.7 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Horry County community of Jonestown.
    • Texas
      • Travis County
      • This Jonestown is located in Travis County and lies 939 miles [1,511.2 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Travis County community of Jonestown.
    • Virginia
      • Rockbridge County
      • This Jonestown is located in Rockbridge County and lies 246 miles [395.9 km]<1> to the northeast of the Jonestown that is located in Cocke County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Rockbridge County community of Jonestown.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Jonestown ...

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.

  • Bluff
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Bluff is located in Madison County (NC)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff
  • Boomer
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Boomer is located in Cocke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boomer
  • Click Mill
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Click Mill is located in Cocke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Click Mill
  • French Broad
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • French Broad is located in Cocke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for French Broad
  • Harmony Grove
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Harmony Grove is located in Cocke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony Grove
  • Houston Valley
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Houston Valley is located in Greene County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houston Valley
  • London
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • London is located in Cocke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for London
  • Lynch ‑ Historic
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Lynch is located in Madison County (NC)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lynch
  • Paint Rock
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Paint Rock is located in Madison County (NC)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paint Rock
  • Read Hill
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Read Hill is located in Cocke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Read Hill
  • Shaleville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Shaleville is located in Madison County (NC)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shaleville
  • Tom Town
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Tom Town is located in Cocke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tom Town
  • Wasp
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Wasp is located in Cocke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wasp
  • Wolf Creek
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Wolf Creek is located in Cocke County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wolf Creek

How Far From Jonestown to ...

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

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers and using the location of where the historic<3> community of Jonestown once stood, the straight-line distance beginning in Jonestown and extending to:

  • Newport, which is the Seat of Cocke County, lies 13 miles [20.9 km]<1> to the west northwest. If you could walk a straight line from Jonestown to Newport, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take 6 hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take four to five hours.
  • Nashville, which is the State Capital of Tennessee, lies 213 miles [342.8 km] to the west (W). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take a little over three hours, a buggy would take 9 days and walking would take 13 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 386 miles [621.2 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take most of a day, a buggy would take 15 days and walking would take 22 days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,281 miles [10,108.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,988 miles [11,246.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,865 miles [7,829.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>'

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Jonestown) 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 Jonestown 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 Jonestown, 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 Jonestown 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 Jonestown. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 35.8834, Longitude: -82.9707       In this case, the coordinates for Jonestown have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 311.474 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 307.084 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 308.165 degrees.