Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Knightstown’s best subject grades are an A+ for history and civic life; its weakest is a D for health. 22% of residents live below the poverty line in Knightstown, above both Indiana’s towns (10%) and U.S. towns (9.6%). Only 64 of Indiana’s 1,086 towns score lower on health. On history, just 16 of Indiana’s 1,098 towns do better. Knightstown has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Knightstown beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Knightstown Academy| Widest gap | Knightstown | IN |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 10.9% | 8.1% |
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Indiana), ordered by how far Knightstown is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,528 in 1870, 2,140 in 2020. The archive holds 10 old photos and papers going back to 1898 and 2 maps from 1960 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Knightstown, 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 Knightstown.
Among adults in Knightstown, 20% smoke cigarettes, where Indiana’s towns sit at 17% and U.S. towns at 14%. For adults in the town, the share who get no exercise outside work is 32%.
| Knightstown | Indiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 45% | 39% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 37% | 36% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 17% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 26% | 23% |
| What stands out | Knightstown | IN |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 10.9% | 8.1% |
| More smokers | 20.2% | 15.7% |
| More adults who get no exercise | 31.7% | 24.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 20° and about 29 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The top destinations are Indianapolis (10%), Greenfield (7%) and Wayne Township (7%). Knightstown’s typical journey to work is 28 minutes. Between 2013 and 2023, jobs in Knightstown dropped by 79, to 614. Half of commuters travel less than 19 miles.
| Knightstown | Indiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $50,000 | $71,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Knightstown: two thirds of households are owner-occupiers. On the market in the town: a median 8 days to sell. Also worth knowing: over the 12 months to September 2026, the typical home gained 1.2% in value.
| Knightstown | Indiana towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 67% | 76% | 73% |
| Median rent | $930 a month | $947 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The natural-hazard score from FEMA for Knightstown comes to 58 of 100. Of the losses FEMA expects in the town, 63% come from inland flooding and 24% from tornadoes. Federal aid has come to Knightstown households in 8 declared disasters; the latest was in 2026.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Knightstown has one park or preserve, 13 acres in all.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Sunset Park | — | 13 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Knightstown; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 Knightstown residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Indiana.
4 places in Knightstown on the National Register of Historic Places.
8 notable people were born in Knightstown.
Town in Indiana, United States
Knightstown is a town in Wayne Township, Henry County, Indiana, adjacent to Rush County, along the Big Blue River. The population was 2,140 at the 2020 census. It is approximately thirty-two miles east of Indianapolis. Knightstown was used in the 1986 film Hoosiers. The Hoosier Gym was used in the filming of the film. Knightstown hosts two annual festivals: Jubilee Days held in early-mid June and The Hoosier Fall Festival held in September. Knightstown also hosts an annual car show and a music series on the town square.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Not for the area. That is 3.6 years of the area's median household income ($63,150 across the New Castle, IN area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.
8 notable people were born here, including Charles A. Beard and Clifford M. Hardin.
