RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of West Virginia >> Greenbrier County >> Dawson >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Dawson, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Dawson 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 Dawson:
    • 37.856230, -80.710919
    • 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 Dawson
  • 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 Greenbrier County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Greenbrier County
    • Since Dawson is near Fayette County and also Summers County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Fayette County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Summers 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 Dawson

Communities Also Named Dawson ...

We found 28 communities that are also named Dawson.

Within West Virginia, the name Dawson is unique.

Beyond West Virginia, we know of 28 communities that are located in the United States and Canada. Of these 28 communities, 26 are located in the United States and two are in Canada.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • DeKalb County
      • This Dawson is located in DeKalb County and lies 380 miles [611.6 km]<1> to the southwest of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the DeKalb County community of Dawson.
    • Georgia
      • Terrell County
      • This Dawson is located in Terrell County and lies 470 miles [756.4 km]<1> to the south southwest of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Terrell County community of Dawson.
    • Illinois
      • Sangamon County
      • This Dawson is located in Sangamon County and lies 490 miles [788.6 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Sangamon County community of Dawson.
    • Indiana
      • Warrick 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 Indiana community of Dawson [Warrick County].
    • Iowa
      • Dallas County
      • This Dawson is located in Dallas County and lies 766 miles [1,232.8 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Dallas County community of Dawson.
    • Kentucky
      • Hopkins 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 Kentucky community of Dawson [Hopkins County].
    • Manitoba
      • We haven't found the location of this community yet.
    • Maryland
      • Allegany County
      • This Dawson is located in Allegany County and lies 147 miles [236.6 km]<1> to the northeast of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Allegany County community of Dawson.
    • Massachusetts
      • Worcester County
      • This Dawson is located in Worcester County and lies 560 miles [901.2 km]<1> to the northeast of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Worcester County community of Dawson.
    • Michigan
      • Genesee 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 Dawson [Genesee County].
    • Minnesota
      • Lac qui Parle County
      • This Dawson is located in Lac qui Parle County and lies 930 miles [1,496.7 km]<1> to the northwest of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lac qui Parle County community of Dawson.
    • Missouri
      • Nodaway 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 Missouri community of Dawson [Nodaway County].
      • Wright County
      • This Dawson is located in Wright County and lies 635 miles [1,021.9 km]<1> to the west of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Wright County community of Dawson.
    • Montana
      • Silver Bow 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 Montana community of Dawson [Silver Bow County].
    • Nebraska
      • Richardson County
      • This Dawson is located in Richardson County and lies 825 miles [1,327.7 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Richardson County community of Dawson.
    • New Mexico
      • Colfax 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 New Mexico community of Dawson [Colfax County].
    • North Carolina
      • Lenoir County
      • This Dawson is located in Lenoir County and lies 243 miles [391.1 km]<1> to the southeast of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lenoir County community of Dawson.
    • North Dakota
      • Kidder County
      • This Dawson is located in Kidder County and lies 1,149 miles [1,849.1 km]<1> to the northwest of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Kidder County community of Dawson.
    • Ohio
      • Shelby County
      • This Dawson is located in Shelby County and lies 254 miles [408.8 km]<1> to the northwest of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Shelby County community of Dawson.
    • Oklahoma
      • Tulsa County
      • This Dawson is located in Tulsa County and lies 844 miles [1,358.3 km]<1> to the west of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Tulsa County community of Dawson.
    • Oregon
      • Benton County
      • This Dawson is located in Benton County and lies 2,240 miles [3,604.9 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Benton County community of Dawson.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Beaver County
      • This Dawson is located in Beaver County and lies 197 miles [317 km]<1> to the north of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Beaver County community of Dawson.
      • Cambria 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 Pennsylvania community of Dawson [Cambria County].
      • Fayette County
      • This Dawson is located in Fayette County and lies 161 miles [259.1 km] to the north northeast of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fayette County community of Dawson.
      • Forest 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 Pennsylvania community of Dawson [Forest County].
    • Texas
      • Navarro County
      • This Dawson is located in Navarro County and lies 993 miles [1,598.1 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Navarro County community of Dawson.
    • Virginia
      • Hanover 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 Virginia community of Dawson [Hanover County].
    • Yukon
      • This Dawson lies 2,969 miles [4,778.1 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Dawson that is located in Greenbrier County.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Dawson ...

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.

  • Blue Sulphur Springs
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Blue Sulphur Springs is located in Greenbrier County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Sulphur Springs
  • Crag
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Crag is located in Greenbrier County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crag
  • Dennis
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Dennis is located in Greenbrier County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dennis
  • Elton
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Elton is located in Summers County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elton
  • Farmdale
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Farmdale is located in Greenbrier County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farmdale
  • Grassy Meadows
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Grassy Meadows is located in Greenbrier County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grassy Meadows
  • Green Sulphur Springs
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Hickory Grove
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Hickory Grove is located in Greenbrier County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Grove
  • Lawn
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Lawn is located in Greenbrier County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lawn
  • Meadow Bluff
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Meadow Bluff is located in Greenbrier County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadow Bluff

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

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

  • Lewisburg, which is the Seat of Greenbrier County, lies 14 miles [22.5 km]<1> to the east southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Dawson to Lewisburg, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take four to five hours.
  • Charleston, which is the State Capital of West Virginia, lies 60 miles [96.6 km] to the northwest (NW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take about three full days and walking would take most of three days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 211 miles [339.6 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take a little over three hours, a buggy would take 9 days and walking would take 12 days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,097 miles [9,812.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,807 miles [10,954.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,683 miles [7,536.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>'

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Dawson) 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 Dawson 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 Dawson, 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 Dawson 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 Dawson. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.8562, Longitude: -80.7109       In this case, the coordinates for Dawson have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 310.116 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.818 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 306.63 degrees.