Thornton, Colorado
| City of Thornton, Colorado | |
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| — City — | |
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| Coordinates: 39°54′11″N 104°57′16″W / 39.90306°N 104.95444°WCoordinates: 39°54′11″N 104°57′16″W / 39.90306°N 104.95444°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Colorado |
| Counties[1] | Adams County Weld County |
| Incorporated | June 12, 1956[2] |
| Named for | Daniel I.J. Thornton |
| Government | |
| • Type | Home Rule Municipality[1] |
| Area | |
| • Total | 35.9 sq mi (93 km2) |
| • Land | 34.8 sq mi (90 km2) |
| • Water | 1.1 sq mi (3 km2) |
| Elevation[3] | 5,351 ft (1,631 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 118,772 (US: 213th) |
| • Density | 3,408.7/sq mi (1,316.1/km2) |
| Time zone | MST (UTC-7) |
| • Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC-6) |
| ZIP codes[4] | Denver 80221, 80229, 80233, 80241, 80260 Brighton 80602 |
| Area code(s) | Both 303 and 720 |
| FIPS code | 08-77290 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0181265 |
| Highways | I-25, I-76, SH 7, SH 44, SH 224, E-470 |
| Website | City of Thornton |
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The city of Thornton is a Home Rule Municipality in Adams and Weld counties in the U.S. state of Colorado and a suburb of the Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area. Thornton is 10 miles (16 km) northeast of the state's capital, Denver. The United States Census Bureau that the city population was 118,772 on April 1, 2010,[5] a 44.2% increase from the 2000 Census population of 82,384. Thornton is the sixth most populous city in the state of Colorado and the 213th most populous city in the United States.
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History[edit]
Thornton consisted solely of farmland until 1953, when Sam Hoffman purchased a lot off Washington Street about seven miles (11 km) north of Denver. The town he laid out was the first fully planned community in Adams County and the first to offer full municipal services from a single tax levy, including recreation services and free trash pickup. Thornton was named in honor of Former Colorado Governor Dan Thornton.
The Thornton Community Association (TCA) was formed in 1954 to help guide the new community's development. By the end of 1955, Thornton had 5,500 residents in over 1,200 homes. The TCA was instrumental in Thornton's 1956 incorporation as a city. Oyer G. Leary was elected the first mayor.[6]
Geography[edit]
Thornton is located at 39°54′11″N 104°57′16″W / 39.90306°N 104.95444°W (39.903043, -104.954406)[7].
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 27.2 square miles (70 km2), of which, 26.9 square miles (70 km2) of it is land and 0.3 square miles (0.78 km2) of it (1.25%) is water.
Demographics[edit]
| Historical populations | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1960 | 11,353 |
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| 1970 | 13,326 | 17.4% | |
| 1980 | 42,054 | 215.6% | |
| 1990 | 55,031 | 30.9% | |
| 2000 | 82,384 | 49.7% | |
| 2010 | 118,772 | 44.2% | |
| Est. 2011 | 121,435 | 2.2% | |
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2011 estimate |
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As of the census[8] of 2000, there were 82,384 people, 28,882 households, and 21,517 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,066.7 people per square mile (1,184.2/km²). There were 29,573 housing units at an average density of 1,100.9 per square mile (425.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was
- 82.71% White
- 1.46% African American
- 1.12% Native American
- 2.50% Asian
- 0.11% Pacific Islander
- 8.96% from other races
- 3.14% from two or more races.
- Hispanic or Latino of any race were 21.34% of the population.
There were 28,882 households out of which 42.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.8% were married couples living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.5% were non-families. 18.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.83 and the average family size was 3.25.
In the city the population was spread out with 30.0% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 36.0% from 25 to 44, 18.8% from 45 to 64, and 5.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 99.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $54,445, and the median income for a family was $58,742. Males had a median income of $40,098 versus $29,982 for females. The per capita income for the city was $41,471. About 4.0% of families and 5.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.4% of those under age 18 and 4.5% of those age 65 or over.
Recreation[edit]
Thornton has 81 city parks and nearly 2,000 acres (8.1 km2) of parks and open space.[9] There are over 80 miles (130 km) of trails throughout the city. Thornton has several recreational facilities like the Margaret Carpenter Recreation Center and the Thornton Community Center. Thornton has several golf courses for golfers like Thorncreek Golf Course.
Transportation[edit]
Major highways in Thornton are I-25, I-76, SH 7, SH 44, SH 224, and E-470.
Thornton is served by the Denver Regional Transportation District (RTD), which provides bus service to Thornton and the rest of the Denver metropolitan area.
The major airport that serves Thornton is Denver International Airport.
Education[edit]
Thornton is served primarily by three school districts: Adams County School District 12, Mapleton Public Schools, and Brighton School District 27J. Encompassing four high schools Thornton High School, Vantage Point High School, Skyview High School, and Horizon High School, five middle schools and fourteen elementary schools. Thornton has several charter schools in or near Thornton. The charter schools are: Stargate School, Colorado Virtual Academy, New America School, Westgate Community Charter School. Thornton has several libraries and is served by the Rangeview Library District.
Shopping[edit]
Thornton has several shopping areas, such as Larkridge Mall, Thornton Town Center, and Thorncreek Crossing Shopping Center. Larkridge is home to national anchor tenants, big box retailers, restaurants, and has a pedestrian village. Larkridge is anchored by Colorado's first Sears Grand store, Dick's Sporting Goods, Bed, Bath & Beyond, PetsMart and others.
Famous residents[edit]
- Todd Helton, Major League Baseball player
See also[edit]
- Outline of Colorado
- State of Colorado
References[edit]
- ^ a b "Active Colorado Municipalities". State of Colorado, Department of Local Affairs. Retrieved 2007-09-01.
- ^ "Colorado Municipal Incorporations". State of Colorado, Department of Personnel & Administration, Colorado State Archives. 2004-12-01. Retrieved 2007-09-02.
- ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ "ZIP Code Lookup" (JavaScript/HTML). United States Postal Service. Retrieved 2008-01-06.
- ^ "Incorporated Places and Minor Civil Divisions: Colorado". Population Census. 2010 United States Census. 2011-07-18. Retrieved 2011-08-07.
- ^ Wagner, Alvin (1977). "Thornton Was First Planned Community". Adams County: Crossroads of the West. Volume II. Brighton, Colorado: Board of Adams County Commissioners. ISBN 0-930952-01-4.
- ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ Thornton city parks and recreation facilities
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