Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Charlestown grades C overall, ranked 110th of 125 in New Hampshire, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. It reports less crime per resident than 85% of U.S. towns and it has 32 miles of trail. On the other side, the median household income is $47K, and 15% of residents live below the poverty line. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 91% of U.S. towns, with 4 places on the National Register. On health, just 8 of New Hampshire’s 187 towns do worse. Its National Register listings include Charlestown Town Hall and Charlestown Main Street Historic District. Among 126 New Hampshire towns, just 6 have a lower typical home value than Charlestown.
Where Charlestown beats most towns.
Census counts: 1,093 in 1790, 4,806 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1868 and 5 maps from 1927 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New Hampshire), ordered by how far Charlestown is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Charlestown, 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 19, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Charlestown.
Charlestown is healthier than towns with similar incomes and gets more snow than most of the country, though not than most of New Hampshire; it also has poverty well above the New Hampshire rate.
New Hampshire has less reported crime than most states, so among its own towns Charlestown sits closer to the middle. In Charlestown, the violent crime rate is 0.6 per 1,000 residents, against 0.7 in New Hampshire’s towns and 1.6 across U.S. towns. The property offense rate for Charlestown comes to 4.6 per 1,000 residents.
| Charlestown | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.6 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.6 per 1,000 residents | 4.4 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
One of its 2 schools is below, with the reason it’s listed. The Fall Mountain Regional School District runs its public schools. Also worth knowing: 2 public schools serve Charlestown, with 402 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charlestown Primary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 234 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NH on state tests and graduation
65% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 48.2% across New Hampshire.
Charlestown’s typical rent is $1,099 a month. Home values are up 4.6% over the year to September 2026. Among households in the town, 79% live in a home they own, close to New Hampshire’s towns (82%) and above U.S. towns (73%).
| Charlestown | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,099 a month | $1,393 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 79% | 82% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The top destinations are Claremont (13%), Lebanon (7%) and Keene (5%). The share of working residents in Charlestown who work locally: 19%. Half of commuters travel less than 14 miles. For Charlestown, the typical journey to work is 24 minutes.
| Charlestown | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $47,000 | $103,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 19% | 9.8% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The Walpole 3 weather station, 12 miles away, records that 60 inches of snow fall in a normal winter: more than most of the country, but less than 77% of New Hampshire places with climate records.
The July high in Charlestown is 81°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Charlestown’s trail density stands at 0.9 miles per square mile. There are 33 miles of trail across 11 parks and preserves. Hubbard Hill State Forest, at 746 acres with 1.5 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Fall Mountain State Forest | 1.9 mi | 519 |
| 2. Charlestown Town Forest - Reservoir Lot | 1.9 mi | 192 |
| 3. Hubbard Hill State Forest | 1.5 mi | 746 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
FEMA expects less storm and flood damage in Charlestown than in 52% of U.S. communities. The town has had one paid flood insurance claim since 1996. Of the losses FEMA expects in the town, 67% come from inland flooding and 7% from cold waves. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Charlestown after 11 declared disasters, most recently in 2023.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Against the 4,780 U.S. towns with household incomes like Charlestown’s, it is healthier than 91%, so its B− isn’t only a matter of income. Within New Hampshire it is less healthy than 96% of the 126 graded towns: New Hampshire sets a high bar.
Among adults in Charlestown, 38% have high blood pressure. Only 8 of the 126 New Hampshire towns we compare have a higher share of adults who say their health is fair or poor than Charlestown.
| Charlestown | New Hampshire towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 20% | 25% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 34% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 9.5% | 12% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 23% | 23% |
| What stands out | Charlestown | NH |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 13.8% | 8.9% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.1% | 6.2% |
| More smokers | 14.9% | 10.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Charlestown. Close and well known come first.
30 mi MountainMount Monadnock
33 mi Ski areaKillington Resort184 runs · 3,031 ft vertical
in town MuseumFort at Number 4
21 mi Ski areaOkemo Mountain119 runs · 2,165 ft vertical
33 mi Ski areaMount Snow119 runs · 1,648 ft vertical
28 mi Ski areaStratton Mountain Resort106 runs · 1,899 ft verticalMount Monadnock: Jonwmcinenrey, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Killington Resort: NHRHS2010, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fort at Number 4: John Phelan, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Okemo Mountain: Jrclark (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Mount Snow: William J Sisti from Morristown, NJ, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Stratton Mountain Resort: Rudi Riet from Washington, DC, United States, CC BY-SA 2.0
1 within 15 miles of the center of Charlestown
About 4 of every 100 Charlestown residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across New Hampshire.
4 places in Charlestown on the National Register of Historic Places.
14 notable people were born in Charlestown.
Place in New Hampshire, United States
Charlestown is a town in Sullivan County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 4,806 at the 2020 census, down from 5,114 at the 2010 census. The town is home to Hubbard State Forest and the headquarters of the Student Conservation Association. The primary village in town, where 1,078 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined as the Charlestown census-designated place (CDP) and is located along New Hampshire Route 12. The town also includes the villages of North Charlestown, South Charlestown and Hemlock Center.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Charlestown.
| Town | NH rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charlestown | #110 | C | C | A | C− | B− |
| Unity | — | — | C | — | C− | B− |
| Langdon | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Claremont | #123 | D | C | C | D | C+ |
| Acworth | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Unity has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Unity reports no FBI crime data of its own. Langdon and Acworth aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Charlestown with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Charlestown grades C overall, better than 26% of U.S. towns and #110 of 125 in New Hampshire. It grades B− for health, A for safety and C− for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a C−.
Yes, by national standards. Charlestown reports less crime per resident than 85% of U.S. towns, an A Safety Grade: 3 violent and 23 property crimes in 2025. New Hampshire has less crime than most states, so among its own towns Charlestown sits nearer the middle.
That is 3.6 years of the area's median household income ($83,269 across the Lebanon-Claremont, NH-VT area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
14 notable people were born here, including Joseph Glidden and Henry Hubbard.
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