Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 1,483, organized in 1843. 71% more nonprofits per person than the typical New York town.
Trash & recyclingThe best of Colton’s subject grades are an A− for cost of living and an A for civic life and the outdoors; the weakest is a C− for incomes. Only 80 of New York’s 1,215 towns score higher on cost of living. 63% of the land in Colton is conserved, where New York’s towns sit at 5.2% and U.S. towns at 4.3%. Cranberry Lake Wild Forest, at 13,259 acres with 22.8 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. Only 114 of New York’s 1,187 towns score higher on civic life. Colton has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Colton beats most towns.
Sunday RockIn a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Colton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 506 in 1850, 1,530 in 2020. The archive holds 14 old photos and papers going back to 2012 and 3 maps from 1908 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Colton, 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 Colton.
153 miles of trail in 12 parks and preserves.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Cranberry Lake Wild Forest | 22.8 mi | 13,259 |
| 2. Five Ponds Wilderness | 7.6 mi | 7,843 |
| 3. Snow Bowl State Forest | 4.6 mi | 821 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Colton-Pierrepont Central School District. Its one school is below. The largest public high school is Colton-Pierrepont Central School, with 359 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colton-Pierrepont Central SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades PK–12 | Grades PK–12 | 359 | B |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
The typical Colton home is worth about $195,000, up 8.1% in a year, 63% below the New York typical home. 92% of Colton households own their home, above both the New York town median (75%) and the median of U.S. towns (73%).
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Most working residents leave Colton for work: only 6% work in town. 13% of Colton residents live below the poverty line. The top destinations are Potsdam (23%), Canton (17%) and Parishville (7%).
| Colton | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $69,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 6.2% | 10% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
People 65 and older are 30% of residents (18% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 16% of residents (23% statewide). The median age in Colton is 50.5 years. Colton has lost 2.7% of its people since 2020, down to 1,483 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Colton | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 30% | 20% | 18% |
| Median age | 50.5 years | 43 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 17% | 20% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 34% | 32% | 29% |
46% women, 54% men
About 118 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±4 points). Across New York, 51.2% of residents are women.
| Colton | NY | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.5% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 6.2% | 9.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 2.1% | 8.9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 14.2% | 14.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 11.6% | 13% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 10.8% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 14.7% | 13.3% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 15.8% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 14.1% | 7.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 5.7% | 12% | 10.4% |
| High school | 31.4% | 24.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 11.7% | 14.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 17.3% | 8.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 18.4% | 22.4% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 15.4% | 17.9% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,500, single groups can be off by several points
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 69% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Colton’s July high is 77°F. Colton has cold winters and pleasant summers.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
44% of adults have high blood pressure in Colton. Only 6 of the 756 New York towns we compare have a higher share of adults who have diabetes than Colton. 40% of adults have obesity in Colton.
| Colton | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 44% | 34% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 85% | 81% | 79% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 11% | 12% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 33% | 35% |
| What stands out | Colton | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 5% | 7.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 9.3% | 14.5% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 12.8% | 7.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
None within 15 miles of Colton; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Colton residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
62.7% of the town is conserved land, across 12 parks and preserves.
3 notable people were born in Colton.
Town in New York, United States
Colton is a town in St. Lawrence County, New York, United States. The population was 1,451 at the 2010 census. The town, originally named "Matildaville", is named after early settler Jesse Colton Higley. Colton is in the southeastern part of the county, south of Potsdam.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
71% more nonprofits per person than the typical New York town.
Not for the area. That is 3.1 years of the area's median household income ($62,850 across the Massena-Ogdensburg, NY area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A−.
Colton was organized in 1843 and has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places. 3 notable people were born here, including Bertrand Snell and A. Barton Hepburn.
