Thomson, Illinois
Encyclopedia
Thomson is a village along Illinois Route 84
near the Mississippi River
in Carroll County, Illinois
, United States
. The population was 590 at the 2010 census, up from 559 at the 2000 census. Just north of the village is the Thomson Correctional Center
, a mostly-unused maximum security state prison.
Thomson is known for watermelon
s, and it has the nickname "Melon Capital of the World."
in northwestern Illinois, 9 miles (14.5 km) northeast of Clinton, Iowa
, 38 miles (61.2 km) northeast of Moline, Illinois
in the Quad Cities
, and 120 miles (193.1 km) west of Chicago
.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the village has a total area of 2.2 square miles (5.7 km²), all of it land.
of 2000, there were 559 people, 234 households, and 160 families residing in the village. The population density
was 253.2 people per square mile (97.7/km²). There were 244 housing units at an average density of 110.5 per square mile (42.6/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 97.32% White, 0.54% Native American, 0.89% Asian, 0.36% from other races
, and 0.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.54% of the population.
There were 234 households out of which 24.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.8% were married couples
living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.2% were non-families. 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.87.
In the village the population was spread out with 23.6% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 24.2% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 20.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.7 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $36,667, and the median income for a family was $41,250. Males had a median income of $39,000 versus $22,143 for females. The per capita income
for the village was $17,261. About 4.5% of families and 6.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.6% of those under age 18 and 3.9% of those age 65 or over.
In 2008, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich
proposed to close the state prison in Pontiac, Illinois
and to open the Thomson maximum-security unit instead. However, Blagojevich was subsequently arrested on December 9, 2008, and removed from office. His replacement, Governor Pat Quinn
cancelled plans to close the Pontiac prison in March 2009, leaving Thomson unused.
In 2009 the United States government announced that prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp will be moved to the prison in Thomson. CNN
stated that before the decision was announced, many people in the town wanted the Guantanamo prisoners to be housed there so the town could get economic benefits.
On December 15, 2009, President Barack Obama ordered the federal government to proceed with acquisition of the underutilized state prison in Thomson to be the new home for a limited number of terror suspects held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The facility will also be used as a Bureau of Prisons facility to house other federal inmates.
In response, the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), which represents 13,000 Illinois prison staff, argued that rather than turn the maximum security unit over to the Federal government, it should be used to relieve overcrowding in other Illinois prisons. AFSCME claims that the other facilities were designed for 32,000 prisoners, but currently house 45,000.
Illinois Route 84
Illinois Route 84 is a long state highway that runs along the Mississippi River in northwestern Illinois. Illinois 84 runs from south of Green Rock at U.S. Route 6 to the Wisconsin state line at Highway 80 by Hazel Green, Wisconsin. Illinois 84 is long.- Route description :Illinois Route 84...
near the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
in Carroll County, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 590 at the 2010 census, up from 559 at the 2000 census. Just north of the village is the Thomson Correctional Center
Thomson Correctional Center
Thomson Correctional Center was an Illinois Department of Corrections maximum security prison located just north of Thomson, Illinois. It has an area of about and comprises 15 buildings. The facility is enclosed by a , 7000 volt electric fence surrounded by an additional exterior fence covered...
, a mostly-unused maximum security state prison.
Thomson is known for watermelon
Watermelon
Watermelon is a vine-like flowering plant originally from southern Africa. Its fruit, which is also called watermelon, is a special kind referred to by botanists as a pepo, a berry which has a thick rind and fleshy center...
s, and it has the nickname "Melon Capital of the World."
Geography
Thomson is located at 41°57′37"N 90°6′11"W (41.960168, -90.103152), about a mile (kilometer and a half) east of the Mississippi RiverMississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
in northwestern Illinois, 9 miles (14.5 km) northeast of Clinton, Iowa
Clinton, Iowa
Clinton is a city in and the county seat of Clinton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 26231as of 2010. Clinton, along with DeWitt, Iowa , was named in honor of the seventh governor of New York, DeWitt Clinton. Clinton is the principal city of the Clinton Micropolitan Statistical...
, 38 miles (61.2 km) northeast of Moline, Illinois
Moline, Illinois
Moline is a city located in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States, with a population of 45,792 in 2010. Moline is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring East Moline and Rock Island in Illinois and the cities of Davenport and Bettendorf in Iowa. The Quad Cities has a population of...
in the Quad Cities
Quad Cities
The Quad Cities is a group of five cities straddling the Mississippi River on the Iowa–Illinois boundary. These cities, Davenport and Bettendorf and Rock Island, Moline, and East Moline , are the center of the Quad Cities Metropolitan Area, which, as of 2010, had an estimated population of...
, and 120 miles (193.1 km) west of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
.
According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the village has a total area of 2.2 square miles (5.7 km²), all of it land.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 559 people, 234 households, and 160 families residing in the village. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 253.2 people per square mile (97.7/km²). There were 244 housing units at an average density of 110.5 per square mile (42.6/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 97.32% White, 0.54% Native American, 0.89% Asian, 0.36% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.54% of the population.
There were 234 households out of which 24.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.8% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.2% were non-families. 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.87.
In the village the population was spread out with 23.6% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 24.2% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 20.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.7 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $36,667, and the median income for a family was $41,250. Males had a median income of $39,000 versus $22,143 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the village was $17,261. About 4.5% of families and 6.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.6% of those under age 18 and 3.9% of those age 65 or over.
Prison
Thomson Correctional Facility was opened in 2001, but as of 2009 has never had a prisoner in its main, 1600-bed maximum-security unit; the only prison population has been in the 200-bed minimum security unit, which was populated in 2006 and averages about 150 prisoners. The minimum security unit has an annual budget of $7 million. State budget constraints as well as labor union opposition to closing other state prisons prevented the maximum-security prison from opening.In 2008, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich
Rod Blagojevich
Rod R. Blagojevich is an American politician who served as the 40th Governor of Illinois from 2003 to 2009. A Democrat, Blagojevich was a State Representative before being elected to the United States House of Representatives representing parts of Chicago...
proposed to close the state prison in Pontiac, Illinois
Pontiac, Illinois
Pontiac is a city in Livingston County, Illinois, United States. The population was 11,931 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Livingston County...
and to open the Thomson maximum-security unit instead. However, Blagojevich was subsequently arrested on December 9, 2008, and removed from office. His replacement, Governor Pat Quinn
Pat Quinn (politician)
Patrick Joseph "Pat" Quinn III is the 41st and current Governor of Illinois. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Previously elected three times to statewide office, Quinn was the sitting lieutenant governor and became governor on January 29, 2009, when the previous governor, Rod Blagojevich,...
cancelled plans to close the Pontiac prison in March 2009, leaving Thomson unused.
In 2009 the United States government announced that prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp will be moved to the prison in Thomson. CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
stated that before the decision was announced, many people in the town wanted the Guantanamo prisoners to be housed there so the town could get economic benefits.
On December 15, 2009, President Barack Obama ordered the federal government to proceed with acquisition of the underutilized state prison in Thomson to be the new home for a limited number of terror suspects held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The facility will also be used as a Bureau of Prisons facility to house other federal inmates.
In response, the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), which represents 13,000 Illinois prison staff, argued that rather than turn the maximum security unit over to the Federal government, it should be used to relieve overcrowding in other Illinois prisons. AFSCME claims that the other facilities were designed for 32,000 prisoners, but currently house 45,000.
External links
- Thomson, Illinois — local chamber of commerceChamber of commerceA chamber of commerce is a form of business network, e.g., a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to advocate on behalf of the business community...
community website