Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 1,733, settled in 1911.
Jenkins’ best subject grades are an A+ for safety and an A for cost of living; its weakest is a D− for incomes. 32% of residents live below the poverty line in Jenkins, where Kentucky’s towns sit at 16% and U.S. towns at 9.6%. Only 4 of Kentucky’s 236 towns score lower on incomes. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 93% of U.S. towns. Jenkins has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Jenkins School and Dunham High School. Jenkins has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Jenkins beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
2,203 counted in 2010 and 1,902 in 2020; an estimated 1,733 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Kentucky), ordered by how far Jenkins is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 4,707 in 1920, a peak of 9,428 in 1940, 1,902 in 2020. The archive holds 17 old photos and papers going back to 1880 and 2 maps from 1912 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Jenkins, 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 Jenkins.
At $455 a month, Jenkins’ median rent is below both Kentucky’s towns ($934 a month) and U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). 37% of renter households spend 30% or more of their income on rent in Jenkins. Typical home values fell 9.6% in the year to September 2026.
| Jenkins | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $455 a month | $934 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 37% | 44% | 48% |
| Households that own their home | 60% | 59% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the Jenkins Independent school district. Its one school is below. The largest public high school is Jenkins Independent School, with 453 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jenkins Independent SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades PK–12 | Grades PK–12 | 453 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within KY on state tests and graduation
No town among the 116 in Kentucky we compare has a lower property crime rate than Jenkins. Jenkins’ violent crime rate is 0 per 1,000 residents. Jenkins reports less crime per resident than 99% of the U.S. towns and cities we grade.
| Jenkins | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.6 per 1,000 residents | 8.3 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0 per 1,000 residents | 1.3 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Jenkins beats the Kentucky average on 0 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 21. 24% of Jenkins adults smoke cigarettes. Of the 142 Kentucky towns we compare, none has a higher share of adults who have high blood pressure than Jenkins.
| Jenkins | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 18% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 15% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 27% | 23% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 46% | 38% | 35% |
| What stands out | Jenkins | KY |
|---|---|---|
| More adults facing food insecurity | 28.2% | 15.5% |
| More uninsured adults | 9.2% | 5.4% |
| More adults without reliable transportation | 14.3% | 8.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 83% of U.S. communities. Since 1989, 13 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Jenkins.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Most working residents leave Jenkins for work: only 6% work in town. The median household income in Jenkins is $27,000. Jobs based in Jenkins fell to 257 in 2023, 37 fewer than in 2013.
| Jenkins | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $27,000 | $60,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 6% | 15% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 22 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Jenkins has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. No town among the 143 in Kentucky we compare has a lower July high than Jenkins.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
None within 15 miles of Jenkins; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Jenkins residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Kentucky.
Where Jenkins’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
9 notable people were born in Jenkins.
City in Kentucky, United States
Jenkins is a home rule-class city in Letcher County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 census, Jenkins had a population of 1,902.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Jenkins.
Jenkins has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Payne Gap and McRoberts aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Jenkins with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
9 notable people were born here, including Gary Stewart and Clay Stapleton.