Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 1,691, settled in 1897. A regional job hub with 1,474 jobs.
Trash day: WednesdayHildebran’s best subject grades are a B for cost of living and history; its weakest is a C− for walkability. 21% of residents live below the poverty line in Hildebran, against 13% in North Carolina’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. Henry River Mill Village Historic District is on the National Register of Historic Places. Hildebran has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Hildebran beats most towns.
2,023 counted in 2010 and 1,679 in 2020; an estimated 1,691 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within North Carolina), ordered by how far Hildebran is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 109 in 1900, 1,679 in 2020. The archive holds 8 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 4 maps from 1895 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Hildebran, 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 Hildebran.
Most working residents leave Hildebran for work: only 3% work in town. Hildebran’s average trip to work is 20 minutes, below both the North Carolina town median (24 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). The median household income in Hildebran is $56,000.
| Hildebran | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $56,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 3.5% | 6.8% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Burke County Schools. Its two schools are below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hildebran ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 297 | C+ |
| Reflections of Christ Christian Academy PrivateLargest high schoolGrades K–9 | Grades K–9 | 12 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NC on state tests and graduation
Hildebran has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 88°, January nights drop to 29° and snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Hildebran beats the North Carolina average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 6. 27% of adults have been diagnosed with depression in Hildebran.
| Hildebran | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 25% | 23% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 14% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 13% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 24% | 25% |
| What stands out | Hildebran | NC |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 9.1% | 7.1% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 17.6% | 13.9% |
| More smokers | 16.6% | 13.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 54% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Hildebran’s median rent is $809 a month.
| Hildebran | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $809 a month | $1,085 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 65% | 67% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Hildebran. Close and well known come first.
31 mi ParkwayBlue Ridge Parkway16.5M visitors a year
32 mi LakeLake Norman
35 mi MountainGrandfather Mountain34 mi Theme parkTweetsie Railroad17 mi Ancient siteJoara
31 mi Park & preserveLinville Gorge WildernessBlue Ridge Parkway: Ken Thomas, Public domain · Lake Norman: Prince Grobhelm, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Grandfather Mountain: Original uploader was KyleAndMelissa22 at en.wikipedia, Public domain · Linville Gorge Wilderness: No machine-readable author provided. Amcbride~commonswiki assumed (based on copy, Public domain
4 within 15 miles of the center of Hildebran
About 2 of every 100 Hildebran residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across North Carolina.
Where Hildebran’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Town in North Carolina, United States
Hildebran is a town in Burke County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2020 census, Hildebran had a population of 1,679. It is part of the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton Metropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Hildebran.
Hildebran and Icard have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Hildebran, Long View and Icard report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Hildebran with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
The typical home is worth about $194,000, 42% below the North Carolina typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
