Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
31% of residents live below the poverty line in Great Bend, above both New York’s towns (9.5%) and U.S. towns (9.6%). Only one of the 759 New York towns we compare has a lower share of working residents who work in town than Great Bend. Great Bend has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
Where Great Bend beats most towns.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
The archive holds 2 old photos and papers going back to 1864.
Great Bend is unincorporated, so Jefferson County and regional agencies provide most services.
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 Great Bend.
Storm and flood damage is expected to run lower than in 86% of U.S. communities. Expected losses in Great Bend break down as 71% from inland flooding and 9% from cold waves.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Half commute less than 11 miles. In Great Bend, the average commute is 19 minutes. Commuting out is the norm in the town: 1% of working residents work locally. The top destinations are Watertown (16%), Champion (14%) and Wilna (11%).
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
A fifth of Great Bend adults binge drink. Great Bend: 43% of adults sleep under 7 hours.
| Great Bend | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 37% | 36% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 33% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 17% | 16% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 13% | 14% |
| What stands out | Great Bend | NY |
|---|---|---|
| More smokers | 18% | 11.3% |
| More adults with obesity | 41.6% | 28.8% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.5% | 6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
1.9 miles of trail. Great Bend’s trail density comes in at 0.3 miles per square mile.
| Great Bend | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 2.2% | 5.2% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
57% of households are owner-occupiers in Great Bend.
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
1 within 15 miles of the center of Great Bend
About 3 of every 100 Great Bend residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
Where Great Bend’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Census-designated place in New York, United States
Great Bend is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in Jefferson County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, Great Bend had a population of 807. Great Bend is in the northern part of the town of Champion. It is adjacent to the southern section of the Fort Drum military reservation.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Great Bend has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.