Thornton, Colorado

History

Thornton consisted solely of farmland until 1953, when Sam Hoffman purchased a lot off Washington Street about 7 mi 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 then-incumbent 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 incorporation on June 12, 1956. Oyer G. Leary was elected the first mayor.

Geography

Thornton is located at coordinates and elevation 5348 ft.

At the 2020 United States census, the town had a total area of 98.282 km2 including 5.239 km2 of water.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 118,772 people, 41,359 households, and 30,254 families living in the city. The population density was 3,409.1 PD/sqmi. There were 43,230 housing units at an average density of 1,240.8 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 77.4% White, 4.4% Asian, 1.8% African American, 1.1% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 11.4% from other races, and 3.8% from two or more races. Hispanics and Latinos of any race were 31.7% of the population.

There were 41,359 households, out of which 43.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.7% were married couples living together, 6.2% had a male householder with no wife present, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.9% were non-families. 20.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.86, and the average family size was 3.32.

The distribution of the population by age was 29.5% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 32.6% from 25 to 44, 22.3% from 45 to 64, and 6.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32.0 years. The gender makeup of the city was 49.5% male and 50.5% female.

The median income for a household in the city was $65,578, and the median income for a family was $74,233. Males had a median income of $49,154 versus $39,596 for females. The city's per capita income was $26,100. About 7.8% of families and 9.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.1% of those under age 18 and 7.4% of those age 65 or over.

Recreation

Thornton has 81 city parks and nearly 2000 acre of parks and open space. There are over 80 mi of trails throughout the city. Recreational facilities include the Margaret Carpenter Recreation Center and the Thornton Community Center. Golf courses include the Thorncreek Golf Course and Todd Creek Golf.

Transportation

Highways

Six highways run through the city of Thornton:

• [[File:I-25 (CO).svg|25px]] Interstate 25 passes through Thornton twice. First it enters from Sherrelwood and Welby to the south, then passing through Northglenn, before reentering Thornton. It then exits the city north into Broomfield.
• [[File:I-76 (CO).svg|25px]] Interstate 76 briefly passes through the southeastern edge of Thornton.
• [[File:Colorado 7.svg|25px]] State Highway 7 (East 160th Avenue) runs along much of northern Thornton. It enters the city from Todd Creek to the east and exits to Broomfield to the west.
• [[File:Colorado 44.svg|25px]] State Highway 44 (East 104th Avenue) begins in Thornton and then heads east into Commerce City.
• [[File:Colorado 224.svg|25px]] State Highway 224 (East 74th Avenue) runs along Thornton's southern border for less than 1,000 ft.
• [[File:E-470.svg|25px]] E-470 runs through northern Thornton in between Todd Creek to the east and Broomfield to the west.

Mass transit

The Regional Transportation District provides bus and commuter rail service to Thornton. Commuter rail service to the city began on September 21, 2020, on the N Line. There are three commuter rail stations within the city, Original Thornton/88th station, Thornton Crossroads/104th station, and Eastlake/124th station, which currently serves as the northern terminus of the N Line.

Education

Thornton is served primarily by four school districts: Adams County School District 12, Adams County School District 14 Mapleton Public Schools, and Brighton School District 27J. These include: Eight high schools (Thornton High School and Horizon High School {Both Adams 12}, Riverdale Ridge High School {Brighton 27J}, and five of Mapleton's small-by-design high schools), eleven middle schools (Five in Adams 12, one in Brighton 27J, five in Mapleton) and twenty elementary schools (Twelve in Adams 12, two in Brighton 27J, and six in Mapleton).

There are also several charter schools in or near Thornton, including Stargate School, Colorado Virtual Academy, New America School, and Westgate Community Charter School.

Lord of Life Lutheran School is a Christian Pre-K–8 school of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod in Thornton.

Thornton has several libraries and is served by the Rangeview Library District, also known as Anythink Libraries.

Retail

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 and restaurants, and has a pedestrian village. DaveCo Liquor Store is the largest liquor store in the world.

Notable people

Notable individuals who were born in or have lived in Thornton include:

• Tesho Akindele (born 1992), soccer forward
• Josh Bredl (born 1991), pro wrestler
• Yadira Caraveo (born 1986), former U.S. representative and Colorado state representative
• Edward Casso (born 1974), Colorado state legislator
• John Denney (born 1978), football long snapper
• Dalton Knecht (born 2001), forward for the Los Angeles Lakers
• Mike Manning (born 1987), actor
• Nikki Marshall (born 1988), soccer forward, defender
• Beth Martinez Humenik, Colorado state legislator
• Mike McCoy (1953–2016), football cornerback
• Adrian Mora (born 1978), welterweight boxer
• Joseph Salazar, Colorado state legislator
• Kyle Sleeth (born 1981), baseball starting pitcher
• Neal Ulevich (born 1946), photojournalist

References

References

1. "Active Colorado Municipalities". [[Colorado Department of Local Affairs]].
2. {{cite gnis
3. "Colorado Counties". [[Colorado Department of Local Affairs]].
4. (December 1, 2004). "Colorado Municipal Incorporations". [[Colorado.
5. (August 12, 2021). "Decennial Census P.L. 94-171 Redistricting Data". [[United States Census Bureau]], [[United States Department of Commerce]].
6. "ZIP Code Lookup". [[United States Postal Service]].
7. [https://www.thorntonco.gov/about/Pages/thornton_history.aspx "Thornton History"], City of Thornton website
8. Wagner, Alvin. (1977). "Adams County: Crossroads of the West". Board of Adams County Commissioners.
9. "US Census Bureau City and Town Population Totals: 2020-2024". United States Census Bureau.
10. "P004 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Thornton city, Colorado".
11. "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Thornton city, Colorado".
12. "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Thornton city, Colorado".
13. "U.S. Census website". [[United States Census Bureau]].
14. [http://www.cityofthornton.net/Departments/CommunityServices/Parks/Documents/TrailMapUsersBrochure.pdf Thornton city parks and recreation facilities] {{Webarchive. link. (July 6, 2010)
15. [http://www.cityofthornton.net/Departments/CommunityServices/Recreation/Pages/default.aspx Margaret Carpenter Recreation Center] {{Webarchive. link. (February 23, 2010)
16. [http://www.cityofthornton.net/Departments/CommunityServices/Recreation/General/Pages/CommunityCenterInfo.aspx Thornton Community Center]
17. [http://www.thorncreekgc.com Thorncreek Golf Course]
18. [http://toddcreekgolfclub.com/ Todd Creek Golf]
19. "Lord of Life Lutheran School".
20. [http://www.anythinklibraries.org/ Rangeview Library District]
21. "Largest off licence (liquor store) {{!".
22. Groke, Nick. (January 28, 2014). "Tesho Akindele of Colorado Mines takes unusual route to MLS". The Denver Post.
23. "Josh Bredl". WWE Tough Enough.
24. Hernandez, Esteban L.. (2024-08-26). "U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo opens up about her depression".
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27. Samuelson, Ruth. (November 2, 2009). "Meet Real World DC Cast Member Mike". Washington City Paper.
28. "Nikki Marshall". University of Colorado Athletics.
29. "Beth Martinez Humenik's Biography". Vote Smart.
30. (February 22, 2016). "Former Packers defensive back Mike C. McCoy dies at age 62". ESPN.
31. "Adrian Mora". BoxRec.
32. "Joseph Salazar's Biography". Vote Smart.
33. "Kyle Sleeth".
34. "Member Profile: Neal Ulevich". Blurb.