Birds eye view, Pine Camp, N.Y., 1910, 1910
Fort Drum’s story
118 years in pictures
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1910.
- 1908Fort Drum is settled
Fort DrumNY
A town of 16,065, settled in 1908.
5 bordering townsMap →
Photo: DVIDSHUB · CC BY 2.0
Population
16,065
Census survey, 2020–24
Household income
$62K
median
Median age
23.3
years
Jobs based here
758
A commuter town
Is Fort Drum a good place to live?
We don’t grade Fort Drum yet; the figures below are still real.
A growing town
Fort Drum has grown 23% from 2010 to 2020
12,955 counted in 2010 and 15,896 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Getting set up
Moving to Fort Drum: who provides what
Fort Drum is unincorporated, so Jefferson County and regional agencies provide most services.
PowerNational Grid19.9¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterFort Drum water systemNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet1 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesJefferson CountyJefferson County provides services here
SchoolsIndian River Central School DistrictCarthage Central School District2 districts serve Fort Drum; which school depends on your address and gradeNCES
Register to voteOnlineIn New York you can register online until 10 days before Election Day, in person until 10 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 15 days before and received 10 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereJefferson County Board of ElectionsJefferson County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Sep 2024
ZIP codes13603, 1360213603 74% · 13602 26%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Fort Drum.
Who lives here
Compared with most of New York and the rest of the country, more of Fort Drum’s residents are under 18
The age of the median resident in Fort Drum is 23.3 years. Fort Drum: just over a third of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more, above both the New York town median (32%) and the median of U.S. towns (29%).
23.3median age · NY 39.8
| Fort Drum | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 23.3 years | 43 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 31% | 20% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 35% | 32% | 29% |
Fort DrumNew YorkUnited States
Ages · share of residents
27%
Education · adults 25 and older
No diploma3%
High school18%
Some college32%
Associate’s12%
Bachelor’s27%
Graduate8%
Women and men · all residents
42% women, 58% men
About 140 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±2.2 points). Across New York, 51.2% of residents are women. Among residents 18 to 24, 67% are men (NY 50%). Median age: women 23.7, men 23.1.
| Fort Drum | NY | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 23.9% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 7.5% | 9.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 25% | 8.9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 27.4% | 14.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 11.6% | 13% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 4.2% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 0.2% | 13.3% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 0.1% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 0% | 7.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 2.5% | 12% | 10.4% |
| High school | 18.4% | 24.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 32.4% | 14.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 11.8% | 8.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 27.3% | 22.4% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 7.5% | 17.9% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Natural hazards
Top of a very low hazard risk in Fort Drum: inland flooding
Expected losses in Fort Drum break down as 60% from inland flooding and 15% from cold waves. On expected storm and flood damage, Fort Drum sits below 93% of U.S. communities.
7risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingCold wavesStrong wind
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Work & commute
Fort Drum stands out in New York and nationally: the average trip to work there is shorter
Fort Drum’s income of the median household stands at $62,000. Just 3% of the town’s working residents have a job in town. Since 2013, Fort Drum has lost 46 jobs, to 758 in 2023. Half commute less than 71 miles.
3%work in town
| Fort Drum | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 11 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $62,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 3.1% | 10% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
In Fort Drum3%
Watertown12%
Syracuse5%
New York5%
Le Ray5%
71 mi
median commute distance
758
jobs based in Fort Drum
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
116″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter13–31°
Spring32–53°
Summer57–78°
Fall39–58°
Oct 13
typical first frost
May 2
typical last frost
+1.7°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Health
How healthy Fort Drum is
The share of adults in Fort Drum who worry about having enough food: 17%. On the CDC’s 32 measures, Fort Drum is ahead of New York on 11 and behind on 10. Among 756 New York towns, just one has a lower share of adults who have high blood pressure than Fort Drum. 8% of adults in Fort Drum report frequent physical distress; 27% binge drink.
| Fort Drum | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 2.9% | 11% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 8% | 14% | 14% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 17% | 16% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 34% | 35% |
32 measures vs. New York
11 better11 too close to call10 worse
| What stands out | Fort Drum | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 1.4% | 7.7% |
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 1.2% | 6.1% |
| More binge drinkers | 27.4% | 16.3% |
Samaritan Medical Center
8.3 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Outdoors
0% of Fort Drum is conserved land
6.7 miles of trail. In Fort Drum, the concentration of trails is 0.5 miles per square mile.
0%conserved
0%
conserved · 0 of 9,187 acres
6.7 mi
of trails · 0.5 per sq mi
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Fort Drum
15pages on Fort Drum
The big questions
Out and about
After high school
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Fort Drum
About 12 of every 100 Fort Drum residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
A commuter town
97% of working residents leave Fort Drum for work
Where Fort Drum’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
758jobs based in Fort Drum
3%of working residents work in town
71 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
About Fort Drum
Census-designated place in New York, United States
Fort Drum is a U.S. Army military reservation and a census-designated place (CDP) in Jefferson County, near the western border of northern New York, United States. The population of the CDP portion of the base was 12,955 at the 2010 census. It is home to the 10th Mountain Division. Fort Drum consists of 107,265 acres (434.09 km2). In the region, winter temperatures can reach as low as −30 °F (−34 °C). Its mission includes command of active component units assigned to the installation, providing administrative and logistical support to tenant units, support to active and reserve units from all services in training at Fort Drum, and planning and support for the mobilization and training of al…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Established
- 1908
- Area
- 167 sq mi
- Elevation
- 590 ft
- ZIP code
- 13602–13603, 13602
Fort Drum’s neighbors
5 towns share a border with Fort Drum.
Le RayChampionCalciumGreat BendBlack RiverFort Drum
How the neighbors grade
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Drum | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Le Ray | #622 | C− | C− | — | C+ | B+ |
| Champion | #650 | C− | C | — | B− | C+ |
| Calcium | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Great Bend | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Black River | — | — | B− | A+ | B− | B |
Black River has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Le Ray and Champion report no FBI crime data of their own. Fort Drum, Calcium and Great Bend aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Fort Drum with a neighbor →
Questions about Fort Drum
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Fort Drum, NY a good place to live?
We don’t grade Fort Drum yet; the figures below are still real.