RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Texas >> Milam County >> Thorndale >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Thorndale, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Thorndale 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 Thorndale:
    • 30.613988, -97.206692
    • 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 Thorndale
  • 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 Milam County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Milam County
    • Since Thorndale is near Williamson County and also Lee County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Williamson County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Lee 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 Thorndale

Communities Also Named Thorndale ...

We found five communities that are also named Thorndale.

Within Texas, the name Thorndale is unique.

Beyond Texas, we know of five communities that are located in the United States and Canada. Of these five communities, three are located in the United States and two are in Canada.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • Tuscaloosa County
      • This Thorndale is located in Tuscaloosa County and lies 590 miles [949.5 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Thorndale that is located in Milam County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Tuscaloosa County community of Thorndale.
    • Ontario
      • This Thorndale lies 1,233 miles [1,984.3 km]<1> to the northeast of the Thorndale that is located in Milam County.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Chester County
      • This Thorndale is located in Chester County and lies 1,366 miles [2,198.4 km]<1> to the northeast of the Thorndale that is located in Milam County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Chester County community of Thorndale.
      • Sullivan County
      • This Thorndale is located in Sullivan County and lies 1,374 miles [2,211.2 km] to the northeast of the Thorndale that is located in Milam County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Sullivan County community of Thorndale.
    • Quebec
      • This Thorndale lies 1,621 miles [2,608.7 km]<1> to the northeast of the Thorndale that is located in Milam County.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Thorndale ...

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.

  • Elm Grove
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Elm Grove is located in Williamson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elm Grove
  • Friendship ‑ Historic
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Friendship is located in Williamson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendship
  • Handy
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Handy is located in Milam County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Handy
  • Hare
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Hare is located in Williamson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hare
  • Liberty Hill
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Liberty Hill is located in Milam County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty Hill
  • Marjorie
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
    • Marjorie is located in Milam County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marjorie
  • Pleasant Hill
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Pleasant Hill is located in Milam County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
  • Sharp
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Sharp is located in Milam County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sharp
  • Structure
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Structure is located in Williamson County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Structure

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

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

  • Cameron, which is the Seat of Milam County, lies 21 miles [33.8 km]<1> to the northeast. If you could walk a straight line from Thorndale to Cameron, with an average speed<2> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take just over a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take most of a day.
  • Austin, which is the State Capital of Texas, lies 39 miles [62.8 km] to the southwest (SW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take just about two full days and walking would take over two days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 1,275 miles [2,051.9 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take about three full days, a buggy would take 50 days and walking would take 73 days.
  • The shortest distance<3> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 7,114 miles [11,448.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<4>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,843 miles [12,622.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,720 miles [9,205.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>'

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Thorndale) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<2>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.
<3>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 Thorndale 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 Thorndale. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 30.6140, Longitude: -97.2067       In this case, the coordinates for Thorndale have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<4>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 319.915 degrees.
<5>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 316.182 degrees.
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 315.057 degrees.