Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Fulton Township grades B− overall, ranked 487th of 767 in Illinois, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. It has 5 miles of trail. On the other side, the median household income is $49K, and 13% of residents live below the poverty line. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 94% of U.S. towns, with 1 place on the National Register. 21% of the land in Fulton Township is conserved, against 3.6% in Illinois’ towns and 4.3% across U.S. towns. On history, just 60 of Illinois’ 1,285 towns do better.
Where Fulton Township beats most towns.
Where Fulton Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Illinois), ordered by how far Fulton Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,512 in 1860, 3,647 in 2020. The archive holds 22 old photos and papers going back to 2006 and a map from 1891 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Fulton Township, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
Ordered by what stands out in Fulton Township.
Fulton Township sends many workers across the state line to Davenport and is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it has household incomes well below the Illinois norm.
57% of working residents cross a state line to work, Davenport among the top destinations. The average commute for its 1,978 working residents takes 16.5 minutes, against 27.8 across Illinois.
Fulton Township sits where Illinois’ towns sit at 26 minutes and U.S. towns at 25 minutes on this measure. Most working residents leave Fulton Township for work: only 17% work in town. The top destinations are Clinton (29%), Fulton (16%) and Davenport (4%).
| Fulton Township | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $49,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 17% | 8.3% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by River Bend CUSD 2. Two of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fulton Elem SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 421 | B |
| Fulton High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 284 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IL on state tests and graduation
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Heritage Canyon Park | 0.5 mi | 13 |
| 2. Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge | — | 564 |
| 3. Thomson - Fulton Sand Prairie Nature Preserve | — | 84 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Fulton Township has cold, snowy winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 13° and about 32 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 60% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 9 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Fulton Township.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Against the 5,342 U.S. towns with household incomes like Fulton Township’s, it is healthier than 84%, so its C+ isn’t only a matter of income.
Fulton Township beats the Illinois average on 4 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 9. 15% of adults report frequent physical distress in Fulton Township.
| Fulton Township | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 13% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 13% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 35% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 18% | 16% |
| What stands out | Fulton Township | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 10.4% | 13.2% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 6.5% | 7.8% |
| More adults with COPD | 9% | 6.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Fulton Township
About 3 of every 100 Fulton Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Illinois.
Place in Illinois, United States
Fulton is a city in Whiteside County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 census, Fulton had a population of 3,647. Fulton is located across the Mississippi River from Clinton, Iowa.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Fulton Township.
| Town | IL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fulton Township | #487 | B− | B | — | B+ | C+ |
| Fulton | #441 | B | B | B+ | B+ | C |
| Ustick Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| York Township | #747 | D | B+ | — | C− | C |
| Garden Plain Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Fulton Township and York Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Ustick Township and Garden Plain Township aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Fulton Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Fulton Township grades B− overall, better than 48% of U.S. towns and #487 of 767 in Illinois. It grades C+ for health and B+ for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a C−.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
