Valentine's Day by the Numbers

The popularity of candy and flowers can't be beat.

Valentine’s Day is a day for displays of affection, and for years, two popular signs of that affection have been candy and flowers, with chocolate and roses on the top of the list. Some U. S. Census calculations follow. CANDY 1,177 Manufacturing establishments that produced chocolate and cocoa products in 2009, employing 34,252 people. $12.6 billion Total value of shipments in 2009 for firms producing chocolate and cocoa products. Nonchocolate confectionery product manufacturing, meanwhile, was a $7.4 billion industry. 3,386 Number of confectionery and nut stores in the United States in 2009. 24.7 pounds Per capita consumption of candy by Americans in 2010. FLOWERS $375 million The combined wholesale value of domestically produced cut …

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Weekly News Recap

Bank Robbery, Concealed-Carry Ban, Referendum: This Week

Patch recaps top news of the week, including an armed bank robbery in downtown Wheaton and updates on Jefferson preschool plans.

Here's a look at top news stories from the week of Dec. 9-15: After Newtown, CT Shooting, District 200 Offers Tips for Talking About Violence Witnesses Describe 2 Suspects in Armed Bank Robbery Downtown Wheaton Bank Robbed Jefferson: New Plan Calls for $17.6M Referendum Like Wheaton Patch on Facebook New Underage Drinking Law Cracks Down on Parents Census: Married Couples Run 59%, Women Run 8% of Family Households Court Strikes Down Illinois' Concealed-Carry Ban Pedestrian Hit in Wheaton Improves, Remains in Critical Condition Prosecutors' Questioning Tactic Scrutinized in Murder-for-Hire Plot 'Chicago Magazine' Names CDH a Top Hospital Murder-for-Hire, Sexual Exploitation of Teens, Pipe Bomb Plot: Court Watch Court Sentences Fourth Man in…

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Census: Married Couples Run 59%, Women Run 8% of Family Households

Data from the American Community Survey (ACS) offers details of marriage and divorce rates and households with married couples, single parents and singles.

The U.S. Census Bureau Thursday released estimates from the American Community Survey (ACS), with local information for the combined years of 2007-2011 on stats from housing to education and marital status. Wheaton’s estimated population in 2011 is 53,238, a .7 percent increase from the 2010 estimate. The data showed about 27,651—52 percent—of the population is made up of females, 22,679 of whom are over the age of 15.  Of the women over the age of 15, 11,727—51.7 percent—are married, with the exception of women separated from their spouse. In Illinois, 47.2 percent of women are married. More than a quarter of the women, 6,576—29 percent—have never been married and 2,291—10.1 percent—are divorced. About 30 percent of women statewide have …

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Census: Wheaton Above State Average in Homeownership, Income, Education

American Community Survey offers detailed demographic on the Wheaton community and others throughout the U.S.

The U.S. Census Bureau Thursday released estimates from the American Community Survey (ACS), with local information for the combined years of 2007-2011 on stats from housing to education and marital status. The survey shows a 73.4 percent homeownership rate in the City of Wheaton, topping the Illinois data of 68.7 percent, and a median household income of $84,980, topping the state average of $56,576.  Sign up for the Wheaton Patch daily newsletter.  Wheaton’s estimated population in 2011 is 53,238, a .7 percent increase from the 2010 estimate. More than half the city's population, or about 42,000 people, are ages 16 and older. More than 28,000 of the residents make up the city's civilian labor force, of whom 62.9 percent—26,626—are …

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No Blarney; Everyone is Irish Today

March 17 celebrates St. Patrick and all things Irish.

The U.S. Census Bureau computes that only 11.2% percent of United States residents are of Irish decent. But you would not know that every March 17. As the saying goes, everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day. Originally a religious holiday to honor St. Patrick, who introduced Christianity to Ireland in the fifth century, St. Patrick’s Day in America has evolved into a celebration for all things Irish. The world’s first St. Patrick’s Day parade occurred on March 17, 1762, in New York City, featuring Irish soldiers serving in the English military. This parade became an annual event, with President Truman attending in 1948. Congress proclaimed March as Irish-American Heritage Month in 1995, and the president issues a proclamation commemorating…

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