Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Franklin’s best subject grades are an A− for cost of living, an A+ for the outdoors, and an A for history; its weakest is a C− for incomes. 71% of the land in Franklin is conserved, above both the New York town median (5.2%) and the median of U.S. towns (4.3%). The biggest place to walk is Debar Mountain Wild Forest, 18,452 acres with 12.1 miles of trail. On the outdoors, just 81 of New York’s 1,216 towns do better. Franklin has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Franklin beats most towns.
In 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 Franklin is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 192 in 1840, a low of 192 in 1840, 1,140 in 2010. The archive holds 2 maps from 1906 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Franklin, 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 Franklin.
83 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves. Parks and preserves in Franklin: 4, covering 41,624 acres. The density of trails locally is 0.5 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Debar Mountain Wild Forest | 12.1 mi | 18,452 |
| 2. Chazy Highlands Wild Forest | 1.1 mi | 8,920 |
| 3. Saranac Lakes Wild Forest | 0.4 mi | 320 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Compared with 83% of U.S. communities, expected storm and flood damage in Franklin is lower. Of the losses FEMA expects here, 75% come from inland flooding and 11% from earthquakes.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
17% of Franklin residents live below the poverty line, against 9.5% in New York’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. The top destinations are Harrietstown (21%), North Elba (19%) and Malone (5%). Half commute less than 24 miles.
| Franklin | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 17% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.6% | 10% | 8% |
| Work from home | 8.5% | 12% | 11% |
| Median household income | $88,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
For residents in Franklin, the share who are 65 or older is 29%. Among adults 25 and older, 34% have a four-year degree or more, against 40% across New York.
| Franklin | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 54.1 years | 43 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 29% | 20% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 17% | 20% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 34% | 32% | 29% |
48% women, 52% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±4.8 points. Across New York, 51.2% of residents are women. Among residents 18 to 24, 85% are men (NY 50%).
| Franklin | NY | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 5.4% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 11.4% | 9.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.6% | 8.9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 3.8% | 14.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.9% | 13% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 8.2% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 20.5% | 13.3% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 20.5% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.7% | 7.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3.7% | 12% | 10.4% |
| High school | 26.5% | 24.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 18.4% | 14.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 17.4% | 8.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 20.9% | 22.4% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 13% | 17.9% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,100, single groups can be off by several points
A winter brings about 104 inches of snow, with January nights at 5° and July afternoons at 76°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
This New York town does better than the New York average on 12 of 32 CDC measures and worse on 7. 29% of Franklin adults feel lonely. Among adults locally, 39% have obesity and 33% sleep under 7 hours.
| Franklin | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 32% | 33% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 33% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 37% | 36% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 34% | 35% |
| What stands out | Franklin | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 4.5% | 7.9% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.8% | 12.8% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.7% | 7.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Franklin. Close and well known come first.
Big draw36 mi LakeLake Champlain
29 mi MountainMount Marcy
14 mi MountainWhiteface Mountain
38 mi State parkAdirondack Park
29 mi LakeLake Tear of the Clouds
19 mi LandmarkJohn Brown Farm State Historic SiteLake Champlain: Copernicus Sentinel-2, ESA, CC BY-SA 3.0 igo · Mount Marcy: Daniel Tripp, Public domain · Whiteface Mountain: Mwanner, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Adirondack Park: Original uploader was Mwanner at en.wikipedia Later version(s) were uploaded by, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lake Tear of the Clouds: TheKilimanjaro, CC BY-SA 4.0 · John Brown Farm State Historic Site: Mwanner | Talk, CC BY-SA 3.0
2 within 15 miles of the center of Franklin
About 4 of every 100 Franklin residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
70.9% of the town is conserved land, across 4 parks and preserves.
2 places in Franklin on the National Register of Historic Places.
Town in New York, United States
Franklin is a town located in Franklin County, New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town had a population of 1,140. The town is in the southeastern part of the county, in the Adirondack Region of New York.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Not for the 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−.
