Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Demopolis earns a D−, 165th among Alabama's 187 graded towns, mostly because of safety and incomes. It reports more crime per resident than 97% of U.S. towns, including 57 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. The median household income is $35K, and 26% of residents live below the poverty line. It also has a long history, with 17 places on the National Register. Demopolis’ violent crime rate is 8.6 per 1,000 residents, where Alabama’s towns sit at 2.9 and U.S. towns at 1.6. Only 17 of Alabama’s 308 towns score lower on cost of living. Its National Register listings include Gaineswood and Bluff Hall.
Where Demopolis beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Gaineswood
Theo Ratliff
Gaineswood is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 812 in 1850, a low of 473 in 1860, 7,162 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1810 and 2 maps from 1946 on.
13 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Alabama), ordered by how far Demopolis is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Demopolis, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Demopolis.
Demopolis is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it reports violent crime at about twice the Alabama rate and has household incomes well below the Alabama norm.
Violent crime runs at 8.6 per 1,000 residents, about twice the Alabama rate; the Safety Grade counts each violent crime four times, so this weighs most on its D−. Property crime runs at 41.1 per 1,000 residents, about twice the Alabama rate, most of it theft.
The property crime rate in Demopolis is 41.1 per 1,000 residents. Demopolis reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 97% report less.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its public schools are run by the Demopolis City school district. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Demopolis High School, with 594 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Westside Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–2 | Grades PK–2 | 499 | – |
| Demopolis High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 594 | C |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within AL on state tests and graduation
4.8 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Foscue Creek Park, 85 acres with 1.4 miles of trail.
| Demopolis | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.1 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 3.1% | 1.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Foscue Creek Park | 1.4 mi | 85 |
| 2. Demopolis Public Square | 0.1 mi | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Against the 1,214 U.S. towns with household incomes like Demopolis’s, it is healthier than 81%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income.
Demopolis beats the Alabama average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 7. 49% of adults have high blood pressure in Demopolis.
| Demopolis | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 49% | 43% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 15% | 12% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 14% | 16% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 19% | 14% |
| What stands out | Demopolis | AL |
|---|---|---|
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 13.4% | 9.6% |
| More adults facing housing insecurity | 18.4% | 13.9% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 25.2% | 19.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The typical Demopolis home is worth about $153,000, up 2.1% in a year, 36% below the Alabama typical home. 55% of Demopolis households own their home.
| Demopolis | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 55% | 70% | 73% |
| Median rent | $692 a month | $943 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 75% of U.S. communities. Since 1980, 9 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Demopolis.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Demopolis has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. Demopolis’ July high is 92°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The median household earns $34,802, against $63,999 across Alabama, one input to its C− for jobs and income.
Adults 18 to 34 are 15% of residents (22% statewide); adults 35 to 64 are 43% of residents (38% statewide). Demopolis has lost 7.4% of its people since 2020, down to 6,641 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 27% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 28% across Alabama.
| Demopolis | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 45.1 years | 39.2 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 21% | 18% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 22% | 23% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 27% | 23% | 29% |
55% women, 45% men
About 81 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±4.1 points). Across Alabama, 51.4% of residents are women.
| Demopolis | AL | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.6% | 11.8% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.9% | 10.4% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.3% | 9.5% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 7.5% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.7% | 12.4% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 14.9% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 14.2% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.3% | 10.7% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.6% | 7.1% | 7% |
| No diploma | 9% | 11.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 30.5% | 30.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 20% | 20.8% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 13.1% | 9.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 13.4% | 17.3% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14% | 11.1% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
About one in 3 of Demopolis’s working residents works in town. Among 186 Alabama towns, just 7 have a lower median household income than Demopolis. The top destinations are Tuscaloosa (4%), Montgomery (4%) and Birmingham (3%).
| Demopolis | Alabama towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 34% | 9.8% | 8% |
| Median household income | $35,000 | $62,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
None within 15 miles of Demopolis; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 Demopolis residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Alabama.
13 places in Demopolis on the National Register of Historic Places.
17 notable people were born in Demopolis.
City in Alabama, United States
Demopolis is the largest city in Marengo County, in west-central Alabama. The population was 7,162 at the 2020 census. The city lies at the confluence of the Black Warrior River and Tombigbee River. It is situated atop a cliff composed of the Demopolis Chalk Formation, known locally as White Bluff, on the east bank of the Tombigbee. It is at the center of Alabama's Canebrake region and is also within the Black Belt region. Demopolis was founded in the early 1800s after the fall of Napoleon's empire. It was named by a group of French expatriates, a mix of exiled Bonapartists and other French refugees who had settled in the United States after the overthrow of the colonial government in Saint…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Demopolis grades D− overall, better than 4% of U.S. towns and #165 of 187 in Alabama. It grades C− for health, D− for safety and B for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D−.
That is 3.5 years of the area's median household income ($43,825 across the county). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
17 notable people were born here, including Theo Ratliff and Waldo Semon.
