RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Wisconsin >> Dunn County >> Colfax >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Colfax, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Colfax 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 Colfax:
    • 44.996906, -91.726004
    • 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 Colfax
  • 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 Dunn County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Dunn County
    • Since Colfax is near Chippewa County and also Eau Claire County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Chippewa County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Eau Claire 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 Colfax

Communities Also Named Colfax ...

We found 32 communities that are also named Colfax.

Within Wisconsin, the name Colfax is unique.

Beyond Wisconsin, we know of 32 communities that are located in the United States and Canada. Of these 32 communities, 31 are located in the United States and one is in Canada.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Arkansas
      • Baxter County
      • This Colfax is located in Baxter County and lies 600 miles [965.6 km]<1> to the south of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Baxter County community of Colfax.
    • California
      • Placer County
      • This Colfax is located in Placer County and lies 1,543 miles [2,483.2 km]<1> to the west of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Placer County community of Colfax.
    • Colorado
      • Custer County
      • This community is historic<2> and although located in Custer County, we don't know where within the county.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Custer County community of Colfax.
    • Florida
      • Saint Johns 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 Florida community of Colfax [Saint Johns County].
    • Georgia
      • Bulloch County
      • This community is historic<2> and we have very little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Georgia community of Colfax [Bulloch County].
      • Marion 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 Georgia community of Colfax [Marion County].
    • Illinois
      • McLean County
      • This Colfax is located in McLean County and lies 344 miles [553.6 km]<1> to the south southeast of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the McLean County community of Colfax.
    • Indiana
      • Clinton County
      • This Colfax is located in Clinton County and lies 419 miles [674.3 km]<1> to the southeast of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Clinton County community of Colfax.
    • Iowa
      • Jasper County
      • This Colfax is located in Jasper County and lies 241 miles [387.9 km]<1> to the south southwest of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jasper County community of Colfax.
    • Kansas
      • Chautauqua 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 Kansas community of Colfax [Chautauqua County].
      • Elk County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of Colfax [Elk County].
      • McPherson County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of Colfax [McPherson County].
      • Montgomery County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of Colfax [Montgomery County].
      • Osage County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of Colfax [Osage County].
      • Osborne County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of Colfax [Osborne County].
      • Wilson County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of Colfax [Wilson County].
    • Kentucky
      • Fleming County
      • This Colfax is located in Fleming County and lies 627 miles [1,009.1 km]<1> to the southeast of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fleming County community of Colfax.
    • Louisiana
      • Grant Parish
      • This Colfax is located in Grant Parish and lies 932 miles [1,499.9 km]<1> to the south of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Grant Parish community of Colfax.
    • Michigan
      • Bay 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 Michigan community of Colfax [Bay County].
      • Mecosta County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Michigan community of Colfax [Mecosta County].
      • Oceana County
      • This Colfax is located in Oceana County and lies 291 miles [468.3 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Oceana County community of Colfax.
    • Minnesota
      • Kandiyohi 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 Minnesota community of Colfax [Kandiyohi County].
    • New Mexico
      • Colfax County
      • This community is historic<2> and we have very little information. For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the New Mexico community of Colfax [Colfax County].
    • North Carolina
      • Guilford County
      • This Colfax is located in Guilford County and lies 866 miles [1,393.7 km]<1> to the southeast of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Guilford County community of Colfax.
    • North Dakota
      • Richland County
      • This Colfax is located in Richland County and lies 268 miles [431.3 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Richland County community of Colfax.
    • Ohio
      • Fairfield County
      • This Colfax is located in Fairfield County and lies 593 miles [954.3 km]<1> to the southeast of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fairfield County community of Colfax.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Allegheny 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 Pennsylvania community of Colfax [Allegheny County].
      • Huntingdon County
      • This Colfax is located in Huntingdon County and lies 764 miles [1,229.5 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Huntingdon County community of Colfax.
    • Saskatchewan
      • This Colfax lies 657 miles [1,057.3 km]<1> to the northwest of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
    • Texas
      • Van Zandt County
      • This Colfax is located in Van Zandt County and lies 888 miles [1,429.1 km]<1> to the south southwest of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Van Zandt County community of Colfax.
    • Washington
      • Whitman County
      • This Colfax is located in Whitman County and lies 1,232 miles [1,982.7 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Whitman County community of Colfax.
    • West Virginia
      • Marion County
      • This Colfax is located in Marion County and lies 705 miles [1,134.6 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Colfax that is located in Dunn County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Marion County community of Colfax.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Colfax ...

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.

  • Bloomer
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Bloomer is located in Chippewa County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bloomer
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 3,508 people
  • Cedar Falls
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Cedar Falls is located in Dunn County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Falls
  • Elk Mound
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)
    • Elk Mound is located in Dunn County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Mound
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 884 people
  • Falls City
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Falls City is located in Dunn County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falls City
  • Howard
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)
    • Howard is located in Chippewa County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howard
  • Sand Creek
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
    • Sand Creek is located in Dunn County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sand Creek
  • Tainter Lake
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Tainter Lake is located in Dunn County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tainter Lake
  • Union
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Union is located in Eau Claire County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union

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

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

  • Menomonie, which is the Seat of Dunn County, lies 12 miles [19.3 km]<1> to the southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Colfax to Menomonie, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take five to six hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take nearly four hours.
  • Madison, which is the State Capital of Wisconsin, lies 175 miles [281.6 km] to the southeast (SE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take about three hours, a buggy would take 7 days and walking would take 10 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 862 miles [1,387.3 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take most of two days, a buggy would take 34 days and walking would take 49 days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,171 miles [9,931.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,924 miles [11,143.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,828 miles [7,769.9 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- Colfax) 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 Colfax, 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 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 Colfax 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 Colfax 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 Colfax. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 44.9969, Longitude: -91.7260       In this case, the coordinates for Colfax have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 317.211 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 314.927 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 309.798 degrees.