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

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Leo, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Leo 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 Leo:
    • 38.744256, -81.417066
    • 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 Leo
  • 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 Roane County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Roane County
    • Since Leo is near Jackson County and also Calhoun County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Jackson County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Calhoun 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 Leo

Communities Also Named Leo ...

We found fourteen communities that are also named Leo.

Within West Virginia, the name Leo is unique.

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

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alberta
      • This Leo lies 1,739 miles [2,798.6 km]<1> to the northwest of the Leo that is located in Roane County.
    • Georgia
      • White County
      • This Leo is located in White County and lies 317 miles [510.2 km]<1> to the south southwest of the Leo that is located in Roane County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the White County community of Leo.
    • Indiana
      • Allen County
      • This Leo is located in Allen County and lies 255 miles [410.4 km]<1> to the northwest of the Leo that is located in Roane County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Allen County community of Leo.
    • Kansas
      • Wyandotte 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 Leo [Wyandotte County].
    • Michigan
      • Baraga 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 Leo [Baraga County].
    • Minnesota
      • Lyon 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 Leo [Lyon County].
      • Roseau County
      • This Leo is located in Roseau County and lies 1,009 miles [1,623.8 km]<1> to the northwest of the Leo that is located in Roane County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Roseau County community of Leo.
    • Missouri
      • Johnson 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 Leo [Johnson County].
    • North Carolina
      • Stanly 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 North Carolina community of Leo [Stanly County].
    • Ohio
      • Jackson County
      • This Leo is located in Jackson County and lies 72 miles [115.9 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Leo that is located in Roane County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jackson County community of Leo.
    • South Carolina
      • Florence County
      • This Leo is located in Florence County and lies 353 miles [568.1 km]<1> to the south southeast of the Leo that is located in Roane County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Florence County community of Leo.
    • Texas
      • Cooke County
      • This Leo is located in Cooke County and lies 961 miles [1,546.6 km]<1> to the west southwest of the Leo that is located in Roane County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Cooke County community of Leo.
      • Lee County
      • This Leo is located in Lee County and lies 1,055 miles [1,697.9 km] to the west southwest of the Leo that is located in Roane County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lee County community of Leo.
    • Wyoming
      • Carbon County
      • This Leo is located in Carbon County and lies 1,349 miles [2,171 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Leo that is located in Roane County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Carbon County community of Leo.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Leo ...

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.

  • Buffalolick ‑ Historic
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)
    • Buffalolick is located in Roane County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buffalolick
  • Clarence
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
    • Clarence is located in Roane County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarence
  • Countsville
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Countsville is located in Roane County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Countsville
  • Flatfork
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Flatfork is located in Roane County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flatfork
  • Flint Town
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Flint Town is located in Roane County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flint Town
  • Geneva
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Geneva is located in Roane County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geneva
  • Green Acres
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Green Acres is located in Roane County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Acres
  • Harmony
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Harmony is located in Roane County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harmony
  • Jingo ‑ Historic
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jingo is located in Roane County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jingo
  • Continue List   (6 more) ...
    • Leaning Oak
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Leaning Oak is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leaning Oak
    • Quiet Vale
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Quiet Vale is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Quiet Vale
    • Red Knob
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Red Knob is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Knob
    • Reedyville
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
      • Reedyville is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Reedyville
    • Rushville
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
      • Rushville is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rushville
    • Speed
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Speed is located in Roane County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Speed

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

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers and using the location of where the historic<3> community of Leo once stood, the straight-line distance beginning in Leo and extending to:

  • Spencer, which is the Seat of Roane County, lies just to the Northeast.
  • Charleston, which is the State Capital of West Virginia, lies 29 miles [46.7 km]<1> to the south southwest (SSW). If you could walk a straight line from Leo to Charleston, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take just about two full days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take just over a day.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 235 miles [378.2 km] to the east (E). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take nearly four hours, a buggy would take 10 days and walking would take 14 days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,087 miles [9,796.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,802 miles [10,946.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,677 miles [7,526.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>'

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Leo) 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 Leo 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 Leo, 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 Leo 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 Leo. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 38.7443, Longitude: -81.4171       In this case, the coordinates for Leo have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 310.522 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 306.412 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 306.642 degrees.