Photo: davestew89 · CC BY 3.0Marathon sees more crime per resident than 62% of Canadian towns
Weighted by seriousness, its crime scores 74.7 on the index for 2023–2025, beside 68.5 for the typical Canadian town its size. What’s more, a Safety Grade of C+ follows from crime the police covering Marathon reported over the years 2023 to 2025: #734 of 862 in Ontario. Behind the grade sit 22.7 violent incidents and 25.0 incidents of property crime per 1,000 people a year, where the comparison is 12.9 and 31.2 in the typical town its size.
Statistics Canada, police-reported crime, 2023–2025 means. The index weighs each crime by its seriousness; rates are incidents per 1,000 residents a year.
What stands out about safety in Marathon
A high clearance rate
Police cleared 59% of Marathon’s crime, weighted by seriousness (73% of violent crime, 48% of the rest), against 34% across Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people. Questions ↓
Assault: high for a town its size
Marathon records 12.9 incidents of assault per 1,000 residents a year, against 6.7 in the typical town among Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people. By type ↓
Over the Ontario norm
Marathon’s index of 74.7 compares with 56.2 for the typical town in Ontario. Towns its size ↓
Higher than many towns its size
Of the 40 Canadian towns nearest it in size, Marathon places 25th from the lowest index. Towns its size ↓
Written from Statistics Canada’s police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025. Figures are what police recorded, not convictions.
What sits behind Marathon’s C+
The grade weighs the Crime Severity Index and its violent half, averaged over 2023–2025, against every Canadian town and city neighbourhood of 1,000 people or more.
Its place: #734 of 862 in Ontario and #1,555 of 2,572 Canadian towns.
The Crime Severity Index and its two halves, beside the typical figure for Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
Marathon’s crime by kind
Against the typical town its size, Marathon runs highest on sexual assault (2.5 per 1,000 against 0.9), drug offences (1.8 per 1,000 against 0.7) and assault (12.9 per 1,000 against 6.7). Break and enter and theft under $5,000 sit below it.
Every Statistics Canada violation line
| Violation | Incidents a year | Per 1,000 | Cleared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homicide | 0 | 0 | — |
| Sexual violations against children | 1 | 0.3 | — |
| Assaults against a peace officer | 1 | 0.3 | — |
| Firearms: use, discharge, pointing | 0 | 0 | — |
| Robbery | 0.3 | 0.10 | — |
| Forcible confinement or kidnapping | 0.7 | 0.2 | — |
| Other violent violations | 1.7 | 0.5 | — |
| Breaking and entering | 8 | 2.3 | 29% |
| Possession of stolen property | 1.3 | 0.4 | — |
| Theft of a motor vehicle | 1.3 | 0.4 | — |
| Theft over $5,000 | 1.3 | 0.4 | — |
| Theft under $5,000 | 35.3 | 10.3 | 51% |
| Mischief | 19.7 | 5.8 | 34% |
| Weapons violations | 2.3 | 0.7 | — |
| Administration of justice violations | 27.3 | 8 | 89% |
| Other Criminal Code violations | 1.7 | 0.5 | — |
| Drug violations | 6 | 1.8 | 83% |
| Impaired driving | 2.7 | 0.8 | — |
| Failing to stop or remain | 0 | 0 | — |
Statistics Canada’s violation groups for the whole police service or detachment, incidents a year its own. Cleared: incidents solved by a charge or otherwise, as a share of those reported.
Incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 means, against the typical figure for Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
Marathon comes 25th of the 40 towns nearest in size
| # | Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adelaide-Metcalfe Ontario | 3,196 | 25.7 | 29 | A+ |
| 2 | Greater Madawaska Ontario | 3,234 | 29.1 | 36.6 | A+ |
| … | |||||
| 5 | Chalk River Ontario | 3,147 | 38.6 | 59.3 | A |
| … | |||||
| 7 | North Algona Wilberforce Ontario | 3,290 | 41.5 | 77.6 | A− |
| … | |||||
| 22 | Kingsclear New Brunswick | 3,158 | 63.2 | 81.9 | B− |
| 23 | Inverness County, Subdivision C Nova Scotia | 3,314 | 68.4 | 80 | B− |
| 24 | Percé Quebec | 3,137 | 69.4 | 134.9 | C+ |
| 25 | Marathon Ontario | 3,223 | 74.7 | 120.7 | C+ |
| 26 | Saint-André-d'Argenteuil Quebec | 3,300 | 76.4 | 122.2 | C+ |
| 27 | Electoral Area A, Sunshine Coast British Columbia | 3,256 | 76.6 | 94 | C+ |
| 28 | Welcome Beach British Columbia | 3,130 | 76.6 | 94 | C+ |
| … | |||||
| 40 | Enniskillen Ontario | 3,174 | 333.9 | 378.3 | D− |
The 40 Canadian towns of 2,500+ people closest in population; city neighbourhoods, city totals and reserves are left out. Towns on one police service or detachment share its index.
The Canadian towns closest to Marathon in population, the lowest Crime Severity Index first (2023–2025 means).
Marathon’s police: about 78 violent incidents a year over 2023–2025
Violent incidents per 1,000 a year, 2023–2025
Property crimes per 1,000 a year, 2023–2025
Statistics Canada counts actual incidents; those police record as unfounded are listed apart and kept out of its crime rates and severity index. Each incident is filed under its most serious violation, which the survey sets partly by the maximum penalty.
Add about 86 property crimes and 46 other violations a year (2023–2025 average). The grid is 1,000 residents, a coloured dot for each incident a year at these rates.
Marathon’s index year by year
Crime Severity Index
Its index peaked most recently, in 2025 (96.3); 2023 was the low point, at 56.5. For the typical Canadian town its size, 2023 gave 74.3 and 2025 gave 64.2.
Every year as a table
| Year | Marathon | Typical town its size |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 96.3 | 64.2 |
| 2024 | 71.2 | 68.8 |
| 2023 | 56.5 | 74.3 |
Statistics Canada, Crime Severity Index by police service, each year as published. Typical: the median of Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
The Crime Severity Index of the police covering Marathon, each year, against the typical Canadian town its size.
Crime in the places around Marathon
| Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marathon | 3,223 | 74.7 | 120.7 | C+ |
| Terrace Bay (54 km) | 1,553 | 41.7 | 53.6 | A− |
| Manitouwadge (60 km) | 2,052 | 92.4 | 166.1 | C |
| Geraldton (120 km) | 4,398 | 198.8 | 261.9 | D |
Nearby, 1 of 3 places with their own figures have a lower index than Marathon. Closest is Terrace Bay, 54.2 km away, at 41.7 to 74.7 here.
Each place’s police figures, 2023–2025 means. The nearest places to Marathon with figures are 54–120 km away.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- An index, not a verdict. Each incident counts by its seriousness, judged from court sentences, and the total is set per resident. As Statistics Canada puts it, “The CSI is not an indicator of overall safety and should be interpreted in the broader community context.”
- Small numbers. About 3,422 people live in the area these figures cover; at that size one bad year shows up large. Statistics Canada says: “Data for police services or detachments with populations less than 5,000 should be used with caution.”
- The index’s scale. Figures are relative to one fixed point, Canada in 2006 at 100, rather than to this year’s national number.
- What clearance means. A cleared case is one police consider solved. Whether anyone is convicted is a separate matter the rate doesn’t follow.
Questions about safety in Marathon
Is Marathon safe?
Its police recorded 22.7 violent incidents and 25 property crimes a year per 1,000 residents over 2023–2025, which gives Marathon a Crime Severity Index of 74.7. Across Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people, the median is 68.5.
What is the most common crime in Marathon?
The three biggest groups are assault at 12.9, theft under $5,000 at 10.3 and other Criminal Code offences at 10.2, each per 1,000 residents a year.
Is crime going up in Marathon?
It has: 56.5 in 2023 became 96.3 by 2025, a rise of 70%. The police area is small or partly reported, so treat the change with care.
How much of Marathon’s crime do police solve?
The weighted clearance rate is 59%: 73% for violent crime and 48% for non-violent. For the typical Canadian town its size it is 34%.
Whose figures are these?
They are Marathon’s own: its police cover the town and no other.
Source: Statistics Canada, police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025 (Statistics Canada Open Licence); TownRatings calculation.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Crime severity index and weighted clearance rates, police services (tables 35-10-0186 to 0190, 0061, 0063, 0064), 2023–2025 · Statistics Canada, Incident-based crime statistics by detailed violations, police services (35-10-0178 to 0185) · Safety Grade: TownRatings calculation. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).