Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 1,467. Home to 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Trash & recyclingThe best of Brooklyn’s subject grades are an A for cost of living and history; the weakest is a D for incomes. On incomes, just 25 of Iowa’s 276 towns do worse. On the outdoors, just 8 of Iowa’s 276 towns do worse. Its National Register listings include Brooklyn Hotel and William Manatt House. Brooklyn has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Brooklyn beats most towns.
Brooklyn Hotel| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Brooklyn-Guernsey-Malcom Elementary School | PK–6 | 300 |
| Brooklyn-Guernsey-Malcom Jr-Sr High School | 7–12 | 268 |
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Iowa), ordered by how far Brooklyn is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 184 in 1860, 1,502 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1869 and 2 maps from 1968 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Who provides power, water and the rest in Brooklyn, 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 Brooklyn.
Brooklyn beats the Iowa average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 4. 43% of adults have obesity in Brooklyn, against 38% in Iowa’s towns and 35% across U.S. towns. 19% of Brooklyn adults smoke cigarettes.
| Brooklyn | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 38% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 15% | 14% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 20% | 16% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | Brooklyn | IA |
|---|---|---|
| More smokers | 18.5% | 14.5% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.8% | 6.9% |
| More adults who have had a stroke | 3.9% | 3.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Brooklyn-Guernsey-Malcom Community School District. Its two schools are below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brooklyn-Guernsey-Malcom Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 300 | A |
| Brooklyn-Guernsey-Malcom Jr-Sr High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 268 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IA on state tests and graduation
Brooklyn has cold winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 12° and about 30 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Most working residents leave Brooklyn for work: only 16% work in town. 22% of residents live below the poverty line in Brooklyn, where Iowa’s towns sit at 11% and U.S. towns at 9.6%. Jobs based in Brooklyn grew to 656 in 2023, 231 more than in 2013.
| Brooklyn | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 22% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 16% | 31% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 19 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The typical Brooklyn home is worth about $203,000, up 6.5% in a year, 14% below the Iowa typical home. Brooklyn’s median rent is $832 a month.
| Brooklyn | Iowa towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $832 a month | $911 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 72% | 70% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 60% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Brooklyn
About 1 of every 100 Brooklyn residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Iowa.
3 places in Brooklyn on the National Register of Historic Places.
5 notable people were born in Brooklyn.
City in Iowa, United States
Brooklyn is a city in Poweshiek County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,502 at the 2020 census. It is located just off U.S. Route 6 and a few miles north of Interstate 80. Near the center of town, Brooklyn boasts a large display of flags from each of the fifty states, branches of the military, and a smattering of other sources. The city bills itself as "Brooklyn: Community of Flags."
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Home to 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Not for the area. That is 3 years of the area's median household income ($67,391 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 A.
Brooklyn has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places. 5 notable people were born here, including Harold Keller and Bernard F. Meyer.
