Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Hanover is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades C overall, ranked 575th of 745 in New York, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is cost of living: a typical home costs about $142K, 2.4 years of the Jamestown area’s $58K median household income. Its lowest everyday mark is in incomes: the median household income is $72K, and 14% of residents live below the poverty line. 24% of working residents work locally in Hanover, above both New York’s towns (10%) and U.S. towns (8%). Hanover has 1 place on the National Register.
Where Hanover beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Hanover is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 2,217 in 1820, 6,944 in 2020. The archive holds 7 old photos and papers going back to 1867 and 4 maps from 1900 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Hanover, 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 Hanover.
Hanover gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns, but it has a long record of flood insurance claims and has lost a quarter or more of its jobs in ten years.
Jobs based here fell from 2,051 in 2013 to 1,567. The average commute for its 2,251 working residents takes 26.5 minutes, against 32.6 across New York.
About one in 4 of Hanover’s working residents works in town. Since 2013, Hanover has lost 484 jobs, to 1,567 in 2023. The top destinations are Pomfret (7%), Dunkirk (7%) and Dunkirk (4%).
| Hanover | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $72,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Silver Creek Central School District. Three of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Silver Creek Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 428 | C+ |
| Silver Creek High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 284 | A+ |
| Forestville Central High SchoolTop results in townGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 185 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
The Perrysburg weather station, 6 miles away, records that 208 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 100% of U.S. towns.
Hanover has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Hanover’s July high is 80°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
6.1 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves. The trail density in Hanover is 0.1 miles per square mile.
| Hanover | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 0.8% | 5.2% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Village of Silver Creek Park | 0.2 mi | 6 |
| 2. Hanover Beach Park | 0.1 mi | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
1,166 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 176 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 58% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 1,166 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Hanover.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Hanover beats the New York average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 10. 16% of Hanover adults report frequent physical distress.
| Hanover | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 34% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 11% | 12% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 82% | 81% | 79% |
| What stands out | Hanover | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.1% | 7.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 12.2% | 14.5% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.9% | 6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Hanover
About 3 of every 100 Hanover residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
Town in New York, United States
Hanover is a town in Chautauqua County, New York, United States. The population was 6,893 at the 2020 census. The town lies in the northeast corner of Chautauqua County.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Hanover.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hanover | #575 | C | B− | — | B− | C+ |
| Silver Creek | #645 | C− | C+ | — | C+ | C+ |
| Sunset Bay | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Perrysburg | — | — | C+ | — | C+ | C |
| Sheridan | #485 | C+ | B− | — | B− | C+ |
| Villenova | — | — | B− | — | C | C |
| Arkwright | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Perrysburg and Villenova have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Hanover, Silver Creek, Perrysburg, Sheridan and Villenova report no FBI crime data of their own. Sunset Bay and Arkwright aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Hanover with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Hanover grades C overall, better than 27% of U.S. towns and #575 of 745 in New York. It grades C+ for health and B− for schools.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
2 notable people were born here, including Julia Teresa Tallon and Jonathan D. Davis.