Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 2,570.
Brasher gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $124K, 2 years of the Massena area’s $63K median household income. It grades C− overall, ranked 601st of 745 in New York. The low prices come with trade-offs. The median household income is $54K, and 22% of residents live below the poverty line. On the plus side, it has 68 miles of trail and 35% conserved land. 35% of the land in Brasher is conserved, above both New York’s towns (5.2%) and U.S. towns (4.3%). Brasher State Forest, at 19,451 acres with 44.9 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. Only 10 of the 758 New York towns we compare have a lower share of adults with a bachelor’s degree than Brasher.
Where Brasher’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Brasher is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 828 in 1830, a peak of 3,578 in 1880, 2,512 in 2010. The archive holds 1 old photo or paper going back to 1865 and 4 maps from 1915 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Who provides power, water and the rest in Brasher, 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 3, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Brasher.
Brasher keeps more of its land conserved than most of New York, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has homes that are cheap against local pay.
Its 20,378 conserved acres are a larger share of the town than in 97% of New York towns.
Brasher’s trail density is 0.7 miles per square mile, above both the New York town median (0.4) and the median of U.S. towns (0.4).
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Brasher State Forest | 44.9 mi | 19,451 |
| 2. Bombay State Forest | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Brasher Falls Central School District. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saint Lawrence Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 369 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
The average commute for its 942 working residents takes 20.4 minutes, against 32.6 across New York.
Most working residents leave Brasher for work: only 5% work in town. The average trip to work in Brasher is 20 minutes. The top destinations are Potsdam (19%), Massena (14%) and Akwesasne (7%).
| Brasher | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $54,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 5.1% | 10% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Against the 7,086 U.S. towns with household incomes like Brasher’s, it is healthier than 58%, so its C isn’t only a matter of income.
43% of Brasher adults have obesity. Brasher beats the New York average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 14. 38% of Brasher adults have high blood pressure.
| Brasher | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 33% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 13% | 14% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 17% | 16% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 34% | 35% |
| What stands out | Brasher | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.1% | 7.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 12.4% | 14.5% |
| More adults with obesity | 42.9% | 28.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Brasher has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Brasher’s July high is 81°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
At 2 years of the Massena area’s $63K median household income, the typical home costs less against local pay than in 89% of New York towns; that ratio is one input to its B+ for cost of living. 74.3% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 52.1% across New York.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 50% of U.S. communities. Since 1984, 4 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Brasher.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
None within 15 miles of Brasher; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 Brasher residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
Town in New York, United States
Brasher is a town in St. Lawrence County, New York, United States. The population was 2,512 at the 2010 census. The town is named after Philip Brasher, an original landowner. Brasher is in the northeastern corner of the county and is southeast of Massena.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
8 towns share a border with Brasher.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brasher | #601 | C− | B+ | — | B− | C |
| Lawrence | — | — | A | — | B− | C |
| Brasher Falls | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Massena | #628 | C− | B | — | B− | C− |
| Moira | #681 | D | A | — | D | C− |
| Bombay | — | — | A− | — | D | D |
| Norfolk | #400 | B− | A− | A+ | C | C− |
| Stockholm | #635 | C− | C+ | — | B | C+ |
Lawrence and Bombay have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Brasher, Lawrence, Massena, Moira, Bombay and Stockholm report no FBI crime data of their own. Brasher Falls isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Brasher with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Brasher grades C− overall, better than 23% of U.S. towns and #601 of 745 in New York. It grades C for health and B− for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D.
Not for the area. The typical home is worth about $124,000, 76% below the New York 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+.