RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Virginia >> Fairfax County >> Bristow >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Bristow, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Bristow 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 Bristow:
    • 38.814835, -77.211649
    • 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 Bristow
  • 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 Fairfax County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Fairfax County
    • Since Bristow is near Alexandria City and also Fairfax City, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Alexandria City
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Fairfax City
  • 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 Bristow

Communities Also Named Bristow ...

We found fourteen communities that are also named Bristow.

There is one other community in Virginia that is also named Bristow.

Beyond Virginia, we know of thirteen communities that are located in the United States.

  • Communities Located In Virginia ...
    • Prince William County
      • This Bristow is located in Prince William County and lies 18 miles [29 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Bristow that is located in Fairfax County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Prince William County community of Bristow.
  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • Cherokee County
      • This Bristow is located in Cherokee County and lies 572 miles [920.5 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Bristow that is located in Fairfax County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Cherokee County community of Bristow.
    • Indiana
      • Perry County
      • This Bristow is located in Perry County and lies 515 miles [828.8 km]<1> to the west of the Bristow that is located in Fairfax County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Perry County community of Bristow.
    • Iowa
      • Butler County
      • This Bristow is located in Butler County and lies 863 miles [1,388.9 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Bristow that is located in Fairfax County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Butler County community of Bristow.
    • Kansas
      • Osborne County
      • This community is historic<2> and although located in Osborne County, we don't know where within the county.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Osborne County community of Bristow.
    • Kentucky
      • Warren County
      • This Bristow is located in Warren County and lies 513 miles [825.6 km]<1> to the west of the Bristow that is located in Fairfax County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Warren County community of Bristow.
    • Mississippi
      • Monroe County
      • This Bristow is located in Monroe County and lies 702 miles [1,129.8 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Bristow that is located in Fairfax County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Monroe County community of Bristow.
    • Missouri
      • Vernon County
      • This Bristow is located in Vernon County and lies 925 miles [1,488.6 km]<1> to the west of the Bristow that is located in Fairfax County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Vernon County community of Bristow.
    • Nebraska
      • Boyd County
      • This Bristow is located in Boyd County and lies 1,147 miles [1,845.9 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Bristow that is located in Fairfax County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Boyd County community of Bristow.
    • North Carolina
      • Mecklenburg County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<3> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the North Carolina community of Bristow [Mecklenburg County].
    • Oklahoma
      • Creek County
      • This Bristow is located in Creek County and lies 1,071 miles [1,723.6 km]<1> to the west of the Bristow that is located in Fairfax County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Creek County community of Bristow.
    • South Carolina
      • Marlboro County
      • This Bristow is located in Marlboro County and lies 331 miles [532.7 km]<1> to the south southwest of the Bristow that is located in Fairfax County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Marlboro County community of Bristow.
    • Tennessee
      • Benton County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<3> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Tennessee community of Bristow [Benton County].
    • Wisconsin
      • Vernon County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<3> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Wisconsin community of Bristow [Vernon County].

Curious and Interesting Names Near Bristow ...

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.

  • Alpine
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Alpine is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alpine
  • Camelot
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Camelot is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camelot
  • Cedar Crest
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Cedar Crest is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Crest
  • Chestnut Hill
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Chestnut Hill is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Hill
  • Doveville
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Doveville is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Doveville
  • Hillbrook
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Hillbrook is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillbrook
  • Homewood
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Homewood is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homewood
  • Hunts Village
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Hunts Village is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunts Village
  • Indian Run Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Indian Run Park is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Run Park
  • Indian Springs
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Indian Springs is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Springs
  • Kings Park
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Kings Park is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kings Park
  • Lee Forest
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Lee Forest is located in Fairfax County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lee Forest
  • Continue List   (10 more) ...
    • Lee Meadows
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Lee Meadows is located in Fairfax County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lee Meadows
    • Mount Pleasant
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Mount Pleasant is located in Fairfax County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
    • Pine Ridge
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Pine Ridge is located in Fairfax County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Ridge
    • Pine Spring
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Pine Spring is located in Fairfax County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Spring
    • Pleasant Ridge
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
      • Pleasant Ridge is located in Fairfax County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Ridge
    • Red Fox Forest
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Red Fox Forest is located in Fairfax County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Fox Forest
    • Valley Brook
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Valley Brook is located in Fairfax County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Brook
    • Walters Woods
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Walters Woods is located in Fairfax County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Walters Woods
    • Willow Run
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Willow Run is located in Fairfax County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Run
    • Willow Woods
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Willow Woods is located in Fairfax County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Woods

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

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

  • Richmond, which is the State Capital of Virginia, lies 88 miles [141.6 km]<1> to the south (S). If you could drive a straight line from Bristow to Richmond, with an average speed<4>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take less than two hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 5 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take most of three days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 11 miles [17.7 km] to the east northeast (ENE). The buggy would take nearly four hours and walking would take five to six hours.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,908 miles [9,508 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,613 miles [10,642.6 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,490 miles [7,226 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- Bristow) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<2>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 Bristow, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.
<3>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 Bristow 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.
<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 Bristow 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 Bristow. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 38.8148, Longitude: -77.2116       In this case, the coordinates for Bristow have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 307.998 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 303.549 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 304.819 degrees.