Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Thornton, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Thornton and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Thornton
- 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 Thornton:
- 42.945402, -93.384622
- 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.
- The Heavens-Above Website, centered on Thornton
- 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 Cerro Gordo County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Cerro Gordo County
- Since Thornton is near Franklin County and also Hancock County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Franklin County
- eBird sighting report for Hancock 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:
- Waymark.com
Communities Also Named Thornton ...
We found 28 communities that share the name Thornton.
Within Iowa, the name Thornton is unique.
Beyond Iowa, we know of another 28 communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these 28 communities, 27 are located in the United States and one is in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alabama
- Lauderdale County
- This Thornton is located in Lauderdale County and lies 651 miles [1,047.7 km]<1> to the south southeast of the Thornton that is located in Cerro Gordo County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lauderdale County community of Thornton.
- Tallapoosa County
- This Thornton is located in Tallapoosa County and lies 819 miles [1,318.1 km] to the south southeast of the Thornton that is located in Cerro Gordo County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Tallapoosa County community of Thornton.
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Idaho
- Kootenai 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 Idaho community of Thornton [Kootenai County].
- Madison County
- This Thornton is located in Madison County and lies 926 miles [1,490.3 km]<1> to the west of the Thornton that is located in Cerro Gordo County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Madison County community of Thornton.
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Nebraska
- New Hampshire
- New York
- Ohio
- Ontario
- This Thornton lies 688 miles [1,107.2 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Thornton that is located in Cerro Gordo County.
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
- Alabama
Curious and Interesting Names Near Thornton ...
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.
- Cartersville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cartersville
- Cartersville is located in Cerro Gordo County
- Clear Lake
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Lake
- Clear Lake is located in Cerro Gordo County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,517 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clear Lake <4>
- Creamery
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north) - Freeman
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast) - Hayfield Junction
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hayfield Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hayfield Junction
- Hayfield Junction is located in Hancock County
- Mason City
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mason City
- Mason City is located in Cerro Gordo County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 26,682 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mason City <4>
- Mason City Junction
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mason City Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mason City Junction
- Mason City Junction is located in Cerro Gordo County
- Olaf
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west) - Registry Park
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Registry Park have been provided by the GNIS.<5> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Registry Park
- Registry Park is located in Cerro Gordo County
How Far From Thornton to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers & Almanacs that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a city such as Thornton to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Thornton and extending to:
- Mason City, which is the Seat of Cerro Gordo County, lies 17 miles [27.4 km]<1> to the north northeast. If you could walk a straight line from Thornton to Mason City, with an average speed<6> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take five to six hours.
- Des Moines, which is the State Capital of Iowa, lies 93 miles [149.7 km] to the south (S). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than two hours, a buggy would take most of three days and walking would take 6 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 895 miles [1,440.4 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take most of two days, a buggy would take 35 days and walking would take 51 days.
- The shortest distance<7> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,331 miles [10,188.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,082 miles [11,397.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,982 miles [8,017.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<10>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Thornton. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Cerro Gordo County: www.co.cerro-gordo.ia.us/
The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/
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- Thornton) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Thornton. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.9454, Longitude: -93.3846 |
| <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 Thornton 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 Thornton, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <4> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <5> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <6> | 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. |
| <7> | 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 Thornton to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 318.358 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 315.96 degrees. |
| <10> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 311.22 degrees. |