Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Chautauqua’s strongest subject is schools: its schools rank ahead of just over four fifths of New York towns. A typical home there costs about $606K, 10.4 years of the Jamestown area’s $58K median household income. What holds it back is incomes: the median household income is $69K, and 18% of residents live below the poverty line. The overall grade lands at B, 334th of 745 in New York. Set against the rest, it does better than 58% of U.S. towns. The biggest place to walk is Mount Pleasant State Forest, 1,459 acres with 10.1 miles of trail. 26% of working residents work locally in the town, where New York’s towns sit at 10% and U.S. towns at 8%. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 96% of U.S. towns, with 4 places on the National Register.
Figures: schools, state test and graduation results · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · home values, Zillow · OpenStreetMap · Census LEHD, 2023.
Where Chautauqua beats most towns.
Lewis Miller Cottage, Chautauqua Institution
Lewis Miller Cottage, Chautauqua Institution is one of 2 National Historic Landmarks here, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 2,518 in 1820, 4,009 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1867 and 4 maps from 1904 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Chautauqua is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Chautauqua, 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 Chautauqua.
Chautauqua pairs an A− for schools with modest home prices, is a second-home town and draws workers from Jamestown and beyond.
2,477 jobs are based in Chautauqua, 1.7 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 22.1 minutes, against 32.6 across New York.
Chautauqua’s typical journey to work comes in at 22 minutes. Half of commuters travel less than 16 miles. The top destinations are Jamestown (9%), Ellicott (5%) and Dunkirk (4%).
| Chautauqua | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 26% | 10% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 18% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $69,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its A− for schools comes with a B for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $606K.
Public schools: the Chautauqua Lake Central School District. The largest public high school is Chautauqua Lake Secondary School, with 372 students. 2 public schools serve Chautauqua, with 673 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chautauqua Lake Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 301 | B− |
| Chautauqua Lake Secondary SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 372 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
Across 10 parks and preserves: 48 miles of trail. Chautauqua’s density of trails stands at 0.7 miles per square mile. Parks and preserves locally: 10, covering 2,101 acres.
| Chautauqua | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.7 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 5.7% | 5.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Mount Pleasant State Forest | 10.1 mi | 1,459 |
| 2. Chautauqua Gorge State Forest | 5.8 mi | 530 |
| 3. Chautauqua Fish Hatchery | — | 67 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The Sherman weather station, 7 miles away, records that 225 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 100% of U.S. towns.
July afternoons reach 79° and January nights drop to 16°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
54.5% of homes are seasonal or vacation homes, against 3.5% statewide, which helps explain the older median age.
Among adults 25 and older in Chautauqua, 39% hold a bachelor’s degree or more. In Chautauqua, the midpoint age is 46.3 years.
| Chautauqua | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 25% | 20% | 18% |
| Median age | 46.3 years | 42.9 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 18% | 20% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 39% | 32% | 29% |
49% women, 51% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3.6 points. Across New York, 51.2% of residents are women. Among residents 45 to 54, 64% are men (NY 49%).
| Chautauqua | NY | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 9.9% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 8% | 9.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9.8% | 8.9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 9.9% | 14.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.7% | 13% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11.3% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 15.9% | 13.3% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 14.2% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 10.3% | 7.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 8.2% | 12% | 10.4% |
| High school | 27.3% | 24.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 12.8% | 14.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 13.1% | 8.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 18.5% | 22.4% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 20.2% | 17.9% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 4,000, single groups can be off by several points
At 10.4 years of the Jamestown area’s $58K median household income, the typical home (about $606K) costs more against local pay than in 94% of New York towns; that ratio is one input to its B for cost of living. The median property tax bill is $2,755, against $6,582 across New York, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
Homes in Chautauqua are typically worth about $606,000, up 3.8% in a year, 15% above the New York typical home. For households here, the share who live in a home they own is 81%.
| Chautauqua | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $670 a month | $1,103 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 81% | 75% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Federal aid has come to Chautauqua households in 7 declared disasters; the latest was in 2014. Compared with 59% of U.S. communities, expected storm and flood damage here is lower. Also worth knowing: the national flood insurance program has paid 42 claims locally since 1979. Of the losses FEMA expects here, 88% come from inland flooding.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Against the 10,431 U.S. towns with household incomes like Chautauqua’s, it is healthier than 66%, so its B− isn’t only a matter of income.
In Chautauqua, 15% of adults report frequent physical distress. Of 32 CDC measures, Chautauqua beats the New York average on 4 and trails it on 8.
| Chautauqua | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 34% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 82% | 81% | 79% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 14% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 32% | 33% |
| What stands out | Chautauqua | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.1% | 7.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 11.3% | 14.5% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.9% | 6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Chautauqua. Close and well known come first.
8 mi LakeChautauqua Lake
38 mi DamKinzua Dam
31 mi State parkPresque Isle State Park
32 mi LandmarkFort Le Boeuf35 mi Theme parkWaldameer Park
17 mi MuseumLucille Ball-Desi Arnaz CenterChautauqua Lake: Banderas, Public domain · Kinzua Dam: Niagara, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Presque Isle State Park: Ruhrfisch, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fort Le Boeuf: Charles M. Stotz ?, Public domain · Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center: G. Edward Johnson, CC BY 4.0
None within 15 miles of Chautauqua; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 Chautauqua residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
Where Chautauqua’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
4 places in Chautauqua on the National Register of Historic Places.
3 notable people were born in Chautauqua.
Town in New York, United States
Chautauqua ( shə-TAW-kwə) is a town and lake resort community in Chautauqua County, New York. The population was 4,009 at the 2020 census. The town is named after Chautauqua Lake. It is the home of the Chautauqua Institution and the birthplace of the Chautauqua movement.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Chautauqua.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chautauqua | #334 | B | B | — | A− | B− |
| Westfield | #477 | C+ | B+ | — | B− | C |
| Mayville | — | — | B+ | — | A− | B |
| Stockton | — | — | B+ | — | C+ | B |
| North Harmony | — | — | B− | — | A− | B |
| Ellery | #341 | B | B− | — | A− | B |
| Sherman | — | — | A− | — | B | C+ |
Mayville, Stockton, North Harmony and Sherman have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Chautauqua, Westfield, Mayville, Stockton, North Harmony, Ellery and Sherman report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Chautauqua with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Chautauqua grades B overall, better than 58% of U.S. towns and #334 of 745 in New York. It grades B− for health and A− for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a C−.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
3 notable people were born here, including Michael John LaChiusa and Arthur Bestor.
