Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Home to 711 people, the town was settled in 1909.
Tatum’s mean commuting time is 32 minutes, above both the New Mexico town median (23 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). Tatum’s trail density is 1.4 miles per square mile, above both New Mexico’s towns (1.0) and U.S. towns (0.4). Tatum 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: 688 in 1950, a peak of 1,168 in 1960, 706 in 2020. The archive holds 8 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 3 maps from 1954 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Tatum, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 27, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Tatum.
Of the losses FEMA expects in Tatum, 54% come from wildfires and 23% from inland flooding. Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 95% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Below: Two of its 3 schools, each with why it was picked. Public schools: the Tatum school district. Also worth knowing: the 3 public schools in Tatum teach 310 students between them.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tatum ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 128 | – |
| Tatum HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 129 | D− |
NCES · EDFacts
Here, just over a fifth of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree, against 31% in New Mexico as a whole. Adults 18 to 34 are just over a third of residents (23% statewide); adults 35 to 64 are 30% of residents (37% statewide).
| Tatum | New Mexico towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 34.7 years | 37.2 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 22% | 23% | 29% |
Somewhere between 31% and 63% women
The Census survey reached too few of Tatum’s residents to say more: its margin here is ±15.8 points. Across New Mexico, 50.3% of residents are women.
| Tatum | NM | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 5.4% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 13.2% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 4.5% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 29.8% | 13.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 19.4% | 12.8% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 6% | 11.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 4.2% | 12.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.2% | 11.5% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5.4% | 7.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 14.8% | 12% | 10.4% |
| High school | 46.3% | 25.7% | 26% |
| Some college | 7.2% | 22.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 9.3% | 9.2% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 20.2% | 17.1% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 2.2% | 13.9% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 700, single groups can be off by several points
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The top destinations are Hobbs (24%), Lovington (21%) and Albuquerque (6%). Most working residents leave Tatum for work: only 5% work in town. Jobs in the town fell by 40 from 2013 to 2023, to 199. Half of commuters travel less than 39 miles.
| Tatum | New Mexico towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 20% | 21% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.7% | 14% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The share of adults in Tatum who had a checkup this year: 68%. Among adults in the town, 31% sleep under 7 hours and 11% have diabetes.
| Tatum | New Mexico towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 68% | 69% | 79% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 34% | 36% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 16% | 8.1% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 14% | 12% |
| What stands out | Tatum | NM |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with diabetes | 11.3% | 13.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
There are 2.3 miles of trail across 1 park or preserve. One park or preserve covers 8 acres in Tatum.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Tatum City Park | 1 mi | 8 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Tatum; the nearest are
About 11 of every 100 Tatum residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across New Mexico.
Town in New Mexico, United States
Tatum is a town in Lea County, New Mexico, United States. As of the 2020 census, Tatum had a population of 706.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Tatum has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.