Is Illinois Really Home to the Most Dangerous Ghost Town in US?
I found a claim that I think is worth debating. Is Illinois really home to the most dangerous ghost town in America? Some statistics say yes, but let's dig deeper to see if it's really true.
Travel with a Wiseguy is a fun YouTube channel that does exactly what you'd expect: Focus on interesting places to travel to. A brand new share from him takes a look at Cairo, Illinois and ask the question...is it now a dangerous ghost town?
What about Cairo, Illinois being dangerous?
On the surface, some statistics say yes. Best Places ranks crime in Cairo, Illinois at way above the national average. They say the national average for violent crime is 22.7. Cairo, Illinois rates 96.8 for violent crime. Ouch. Property crime on average in America is 35.4. Cairo, Illinois rates 85.1. Not good.
Instead of just trusting one source, let's bring in another. Crime Grade gives Cairo, Illinois an F. Here's a staggering statistic. They say that a crime happens ever 20 hours or so and your home is 300% more likely to be robbed in Cairo, Illinois if you have no home security system. They estimate that only 2% of American cities are more dangerous than Cairo, Illinois.
Considering that Wikipedia says the population of Cairo is now less than 2,000 as of the latest census, that's a remarkable number of crimes for so few people.
While there are still many families that call Cairo, Illinois home, the number of vacant buildings does make "ghost town" a valid description. Perhaps someday that very historic part of Illinois can turn things around and make it what it once was.