Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 455, settled in 1911.
Of the 143 Kentucky towns we compare, none has a lower peak summer temperature than Benham. Benham’s concentration of trails is 2.0 miles per square mile, above both Kentucky’s towns (0.3) and U.S. towns (0.4). Benham Historic District is on the National Register of Historic Places. Benham has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Census counts: 1,000 in 1970, 512 in 2020. The archive holds 3 old photos and papers going back to 1880 and 4 maps from 1922 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Benham, 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 Benham.
Of the losses FEMA expects in Benham, 82% come from inland flooding and 6% from cold waves. This Kentucky town has had 2 paid flood insurance claims since 1984. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Benham after 7 declared disasters, most recently in 2025.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Benham: 0.9% of working residents work locally, against 15% in Kentucky’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns. Its average trip to work stands at 14 minutes. The top destinations are Cumberland (6%), Hazard (5%) and Lexington (5%). Half the trips to work are shorter than 50 miles.
| Benham | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 14 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 0.9% | 15% | 8% |
| Median household income | $45,000 | $60,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 16% | 16% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The range runs from 25° on a January night to 82° on a July afternoon, with about 35 inches of snow a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
455 people lived in Benham by the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate, 10% fewer than in 2020. Adults 35 to 64 are 45% of residents (38% statewide); children under 18 are 16% of residents (23% statewide). Its age of the median resident stands at 43.6 years. Only 9 of the 143 Kentucky towns we compare have a lower share of children under 18 than Benham.
| Benham | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 16% | 22% | 22% |
| Median age | 43.6 years | 37.6 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 18% | 26% | 29% |
53% women, 47% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±6.7 points. Across Kentucky, 50.5% of residents are women.
| Benham | KY | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.1% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 5.9% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 10.2% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 7.6% | 13.1% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 19.2% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 13.2% | 12.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.7% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.6% | 10.5% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 10.5% | 6.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 20.9% | 11.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 34% | 32.6% | 26% |
| Some college | 17.9% | 19.7% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 9.3% | 9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 9.2% | 16.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 8.6% | 11.3% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 500, single groups can be off by several points
Among 122 Kentucky towns, just 8 have a higher share of conserved land than Benham. 2 parks and preserves cover 6 acres in the town.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Miner's Memorial Park | 0.2 mi | 3 |
| 2. Coal Miners Memorial Park | — | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
No violent or property crimes were reported in Benham in 2025. In a town this small, a few incidents move the numbers a lot, so rates aren't shown.
Benham is small, so we show counts rather than rates.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
In Benham, 34% of adults get no exercise outside work. Among 142 Kentucky towns, just 5 have a higher share of adults who say their health is fair or poor than Benham. CDC measures, 31 in all: Benham beats Kentucky on 2 and trails on 20.
| Benham | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 15% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 18% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 23% | 19% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 13% | 12% |
| What stands out | Benham | KY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 11.2% | 14.2% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 84.2% | 81.3% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 30.1% | 18.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
2 within 15 miles of the center of Benham
About 8 of every 100 Benham residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Kentucky.
Where Benham’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
City in Kentucky, United States
Benham is a home rule-class city in Harlan County, Kentucky, in the United States. The city was formally incorporated by the General Assembly in 1961. The population was 512 at the 2020 census, up from 500 at the 2010 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Benham has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.