PathforkKY
A town of 542, settled in 1916.
Is Pathfork a good place to live?
Of the 143 Kentucky towns we compare, none has a higher owner-occupancy rate than Pathfork. Pathfork has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
542 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Moving to Pathfork: who provides what
Pathfork is unincorporated, so Harlan County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Pathfork.
Homes in Pathfork are worth about $81K, by Zillow’s estimate
Typical home values fell 27% in the year to September 2026.
Typical home value
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Pathfork stands out in Kentucky and nationally, with the FEMA risk score higher than most
FEMA puts 73% of Pathfork’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 8% to strong winds. One declared disaster, in 2025, has brought federal aid to Pathfork households. Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 94% of U.S. communities.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Most of Pathfork’s workers head elsewhere: there are 0.0 jobs for each of them
The top destinations are Lexington (7%), Harlan (6%) and Hazard (5%). Pathfork: just over a fifth of residents live below the poverty line, above both the Kentucky town median (16%) and the median of U.S. towns (9.6%). Its middle household income is $50,000. Half commute less than 30 miles.
| Pathfork | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 21% | 16% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $50,000 | $60,000 | $80,000 |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Fewer middle-aged adults than Kentucky overall
In Pathfork, just over a third of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more. Adults 35 to 64 are just over a quarter of residents (38% statewide); children under 18 are 30% of residents (23% statewide).
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
Somewhere between 40% and 60% women
The Census survey reached too few of Pathfork’s residents to say more: its margin here is ±10.1 points. Across Kentucky, 50.5% of residents are women.
| Pathfork | KY | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 0% | 12.1% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 30.3% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 0% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 21% | 13.1% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 0% | 12.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 18.3% | 12.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 8.1% | 13% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 7.7% | 10.5% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 14.6% | 6.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 26.2% | 11.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 11.6% | 32.6% | 26% |
| Some college | 27.2% | 19.7% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 0% | 9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 16.4% | 16.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 18.5% | 11.3% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 500, single groups can be off by several points
Compared with most of Kentucky and the rest of the country, a typical July afternoon in Pathfork is cooler
Summers in Pathfork are pleasant, and winters chilly, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 25° and about 10 inches of snow falls in a winter.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
How healthy Pathfork is
Among adults in Pathfork, 20% report frequent mental distress. The town does better than the Kentucky average on 2 of 31 CDC measures and worse on 22. No town among the 142 in Kentucky we compare has a lower share of adults who binge drink than Pathfork. 28% of adults in Pathfork smoke cigarettes; 21% have diabetes.
| Pathfork | Kentucky towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 23% | 19% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 18% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 13% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | Pathfork | KY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 9.8% | 14.2% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 86.4% | 81.3% |
| More adults with COPD | 19.3% | 10.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Everything we know about Pathfork
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Pathfork
About 0 of every 100 Pathfork residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Kentucky.
100% of working residents leave Pathfork for work
Where Pathfork’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About Pathfork
Unincorporated community in Kentucky, United States
Pathfork is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Harlan County, Kentucky, United States, located to the south bank of Wallins Creek. As of the 2020 census, Pathfork had a population of 326. The community's main roads are East Hwy 72, which connects from US 119, and travels to an end at Old RB Mines, however, 72 runs to Harlan via gravel road, and Ky 2005 an old gravel road that leads to Smith/Brownies Creek, south of Harlan, Kentucky.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 1.3 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,240 ft
- ZIP code
- 40863
Questions about Pathfork
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Pathfork, KY a good place to live?
Pathfork has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.