Twelve Mile Circle – An Appreciation of Unusual Places

Twelve Mile Circle

  • Canada’s 4 Corners

    A spot exists in the United States where four states come together at a common point. Naturally they call it the Four Corners. A paved road goes right up to it and for a modest admission fee, visitors can touch four states simultaneously. Then they can take pictures and shop for Navajo crafts set up…

  • Corners

    I have a fascination with political boundaries, whether national, state/provincial, county, or town. Especially, I like corners where three or more join together at a point. On my website I’ve compiled trip reports about a few of those locations. Most well known, it includes the renowned 4-Corners of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. Additionally I…

  • 7 Flags Over Texas?

    In a recent entry I provided a listing of the six flags that make up the famous “Six Flags Over Texas.” What is less known — and what many Texans along the southeastern border with Mexico believe — is that there were actually SEVEN flags over Texas. Had history gone a little differently another flag…

  • 6 Flags Over Texas

    Conventional wisdom notes that six national flags flew over the State of Texas at one time or another. It’s colloquial to the point of the Six Flags amusement parks taking their name from it. But what are the six flags? Spain France Mexico Republic of Texas Confederate States of America United States of America

  • Reelfoot Lake

    There is only one large natural lake in Tennessee. It straddles the Lake Co. / Obion Co. border just a few miles from the Mississippi River. Some scientists speculate that Reelfoot Lake formed as a result of the massive New Madrid earthquakes of 1811 – 1812. Their theory does fall within the realm of possibility.…

  • Library of Congress’ Waldseemüller Map

    Reuters reports that the only remaining copy of the map that first used the label “America” will go on permanent display at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC (map). Martin Waldseemüller created the map in 1507 and it displayed unusual accuracy for its time. However, experts haven’t figured out exactly how Waldseemüller may have…

  • Highest Elevation in Portugal

    So the highest elevation in Portugal is not on mainland Europe. It exhibits an unexpected twist of Strange Geography. Actually, it sits on an island in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, some 1,500 kilometers (950 miles) from the Portuguese capital city of Lisbon. The island of Pico (literally “peak”) with its dominant stratovolcano of…

  • Google Maps Terrain Button

    I noticed that within the last few days, Google Maps added a “Terrain” button that shows general elevations by using different shades and shadows. Obviously it has its greatest impact where there are rapids changes in elevation such as mountain or canyons. I’ve had a lot of fun playing around with the feature as in…

  • Traffic Camera Mayhem

    The urban landscape increasingly features traffic cameras. One could argue whether they exist to control driving behavior or to fill city coffers. Either way, they are not going away. So it’s not entirely surprising that the Knoxville News Sentinel reported that a local resident went off the deep end and shot a camera three times…

  • Thoughts on Los Angeles and Reno

    In an earlier post, 12MC noted that we can sometime confuse east and west in our geographic perceptions. A similar condition exists with Los Angeles, California and Reno, Nevada. Los Angeles conjures up certain images. Think of beaches, surfing and movie stars living on hillsides with expansive views of the Pacific Ocean. Most of us…

Latest Comments

  2. Hi Mr. Howder — Just going from memory, I recall that your “rule” for counting a nation/state/county is “if I’m…

  5. Does anyone have actual music to the song – Tanaha ,Timpson. Bobo and Blair ?? It was recorded by Tex…