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The Great Bend handbook

Living in Great Bend, NY: what to set up and who to call

Great Bend has no town government of its own, so Jefferson County runs its elections and most services, and its children attend Carthage Central School District. The Deferiet Village water system has a clean five-year EPA record, but its latest lead result, 6.0 ppb, was higher than 93% of similar systems’ (the action level is 15).

Great Bend has no town government. It’s a census-designated place in Jefferson County, so the county and regional agencies provide most services. This page answers what we can; the same answers appear on Great Bend’s town page under “Getting set up”.

I’m new in town

What to set up in Great Bend, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.

Home services

Power, water and internet

Who to call to start service at a new address in Great Bend.

Electricity

Power comes from National Grid

National Grid (Niagara Mohawk Power Corp.), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Great Bend. Its homes paid an average of 19.9¢ per kWh in 2025, about $130 a month (its average across New York, for customers on its standard service). New York lets you buy power from another supplier; 6% of National Grid’s home customers do, and National Grid still delivers it.

Start or move service: www1.nationalgridus.com · (315) 474-1511

Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.

Drinking water · reported to EPA

Water comes from Deferiet Village water system

The Deferiet Village water system supplies Great Bend: about 22% of residents live in its service area. Champion WD 2, 4 & 5 serves another 16%. About 61% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It draws ground water and serves 420 people in all.

No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 77% of the 15,074 systems serving 101–500 people.

Lead, 90th percentile6.0 ppb
015 ppb action level20

The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2021–Dec 2023, was 6.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. That’s higher than 93% of similar systems’ latest results.

The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report

EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0 (EPA’s estimate). Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. NY2202336.

Internet

3 home internet providers serve Great Bend

94% of 364 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 1% can get fiber.

ProviderTechnologyAddressesFastest (Mbps)
SpectrumCable, Fiber93%1,000/1,000
VerizonFixed wireless79%300/20
T-MobileFixed wireless46%100/20

FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.

Trash & recycling

We don’t have Great Bend’s trash rules yet

Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Great Bend.

Trash, recycling and bulk pickupNot on fileGreat Bend has no town government of its own, so look for trash and recycling rules on the county’s site.
Schools

Where your child goes to school

Public school districts and the school path by grade.

Great Bend kids go to
PK–43 elementary schoolsDepends on your address
5–8Carthage Middle Schoolin Carthage
9–12Carthage Senior High Schoolin Carthage

Great Bend is in Carthage Central School District.

Test scores and every school: see Schools →

U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.

Government & voting

No town hall: the county runs things

Great Bend is unincorporated, so Jefferson County is the local government.

Local governmentJefferson CountyGreat Bend is a census-designated place: no town hall of its ownCensus
Who runs elections hereJefferson County Board of ElectionsElections here are run by Jefferson County (county election office). 175 Arsenal St. - 1st Floor, Watertown, NY 13601 · (315) 785-3027 · [email protected]FVAP, Sep 2024
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.govCheck your registration and polling placevoterlookup.elections.ny.govThe state’s voter lookup

Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Sep 2024; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.

ZIP codes & area codes

Great Bend spans 2 ZIP codes

ZIP codes where Great Bend residents live, with the share of the town in each.

ZIPPost office nameShare of Great BendZIP’s residents in Great Bend
13619Carthage, NY90%7%
13643Great Bend, NY10%100%

Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.

Everyday places

Getting around, the ER and the library

One line each; the subject pages have the rest.

ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.

Questions about living in Great Bend

Who supplies Great Bend’s drinking water, and has it had violations?

The Deferiet Village water system (EPA ID NY2202336). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 77% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 6.0 ppb (Jan 2021–Dec 2023), against a 15 ppb action level.

Who provides electricity in Great Bend?

National Grid (Niagara Mohawk Power Corp.), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 19.9¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).

What internet providers serve Great Bend?

Spectrum, Verizon, T-Mobile (FCC, as of December 2025).

What ZIP codes are in Great Bend?

13619 (90%), 13643 (10%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.

What school district is Great Bend in?

Carthage Central School District.

How do I register to vote in Great Bend?

In 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). Elections here are run by the Jefferson County Board of Elections. Check your registration at voterlookup.elections.ny.gov.

Sources & dates

Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.

  • Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
  • Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
  • Trash: OpenStreetMap, Geofabrik extract of Oct 9, 2026. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
  • ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
  • Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
  • Registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
  • Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
  • Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.