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

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Norfolk, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Norfolk 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 Norfolk:
    • 36.858165, -76.286947
    • 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 Norfolk
  • 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 Norfolk

Communities Also Named Norfolk ...

We found fifteen communities that are also named Norfolk.

Within Virginia, the name Norfolk is unique.

Beyond Virginia, we know of fifteen communities that are located in the United States and Canada. Of these fifteen communities, fourteen are located in the United States and one is in Canada.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Colorado
      • Larimer County
      • This Norfolk is located in Larimer County and lies 1,559 miles [2,509 km]<1> to the west northwest.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Larimer County community of Norfolk.
    • Connecticut
      • Litchfield County
      • This Norfolk is located in Litchfield County and lies 390 miles [627.6 km]<1> to the north northeast.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Litchfield County community of Norfolk.
    • Kansas
      • Ellis 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 Norfolk [Ellis County].
    • Massachusetts
      • Norfolk County
      • This Norfolk is located in Norfolk County and lies 449 miles [722.6 km]<1> to the north northeast.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Norfolk County community of Norfolk.
    • Michigan
      • Antrim 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 Michigan community of Norfolk [Antrim County].
    • Minnesota
      • Renville 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 Minnesota community of Norfolk [Renville County].
    • Mississippi
      • DeSoto County
      • This Norfolk is located in DeSoto County and lies 790 miles [1,271.4 km]<1> to the west.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the DeSoto County community of Norfolk.
    • Missouri
      • Mississippi County
      • 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 Missouri community of Norfolk [Mississippi County].
    • Nebraska
      • Madison County
      • This Norfolk is located in Madison County and lies 1,178 miles [1,895.8 km]<1> to the west northwest.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Madison County community of Norfolk.
    • New York
      • Saint Lawrence County
      • This Norfolk is located in Saint Lawrence County and lies 552 miles [888.4 km]<1> to the north.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Saint Lawrence County community of Norfolk.
    • Oklahoma
      • Payne 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 Oklahoma community of Norfolk [Payne County].
    • Ontario
      • 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 Ontario community of Norfolk.
    • Oregon
      • Douglas 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 Oregon community of Norfolk [Douglas County].
    • South Dakota
      • Sully 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 South Dakota community of Norfolk [Sully County].
    • Texas
      • Rusk 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 Texas community of Norfolk [Rusk County].

Curious and Interesting Names Near Norfolk ...

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.

  • Cloverdale
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Cloverdale is located in Chesapeake City
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cloverdale
  • Edgewater
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Edgewater is located in Norfolk City
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgewater
  • Edmonds Corner
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
    • Edmonds Corner is located in Chesapeake City
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edmonds Corner
  • Elizabeth Park
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
    • Elizabeth Park is located in Norfolk City
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elizabeth Park
  • Elizabeth River Shores
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Elizabeth River Shores is located in Virginia Beach City
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elizabeth River Shores
  • Fairwater
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Fairwater is located in Norfolk City
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fairwater
  • Foundation Park
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
    • Foundation Park is located in Chesapeake City
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foundation Park
  • Fox Hall
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
    • Fox Hall is located in Norfolk City
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox Hall
  • Fox Hall Park
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Fox Hall Park is located in Norfolk City
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox Hall Park
  • Green Hill Farms
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Green Hill Farms is located in Norfolk City
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Hill Farms
  • Greenwood
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Greenwood is located in Norfolk City
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
  • Grove Park
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Grove Park is located in Portsmouth City
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grove Park
  • Continue List   (17 more) ...
    • Huntersville
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
      • Huntersville is located in Norfolk City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntersville
    • Indian River Park
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Indian River Park is located in Chesapeake City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian River Park
    • Kingman
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
      • Kingman is located in Portsmouth City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingman
    • Larrymore Lawns
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Larrymore Lawns is located in Norfolk City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Larrymore Lawns
    • Lincoln Park
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Lincoln Park is located in Norfolk City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln Park
    • Meadowbrook
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Meadowbrook is located in Norfolk City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadowbrook
    • Oregon Gardens
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Oregon Gardens is located in Portsmouth City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oregon Gardens
    • Pennsytown
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Pennsytown is located in Norfolk City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pennsytown
    • Poplar Halls
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Poplar Halls is located in Norfolk City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poplar Halls
    • River Park
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • River Park is located in Portsmouth City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Park
    • Riverview
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Riverview is located in Norfolk City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverview
    • Sherry Park
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
      • Sherry Park is located in Virginia Beach City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sherry Park
    • Tanglewood
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Tanglewood is located in Chesapeake City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tanglewood
    • Tanner Creek
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Tanner Creek is located in Norfolk City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tanner Creek
    • Tanners Cross Roads ‑ Historic
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
      • Tanners Cross Roads is located in Norfolk City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tanners Cross Roads
    • Virginia Gardens
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Virginia Gardens is located in Norfolk City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Virginia Gardens
    • Williams Court
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
      • Williams Court is located in Portsmouth City
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williams Court

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

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

  • Richmond, which is the State Capital of Virginia, lies 78 miles [125.5 km]<1> to the northwest (NW). If you could drive a straight line from Norfolk 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 146 miles [235 km] to the north northwest (NNW). Driving would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 6 days and walking would take 9 days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,951 miles [9,577.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,645 miles [10,694.1 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,527 miles [7,285.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>'

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Norfolk) 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 Norfolk 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 . 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 Norfolk, 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 Norfolk 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 Norfolk. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 36.8582, Longitude: -76.2869    
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 307.574 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 302.767 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 305.182 degrees.