Stillwater Bridge · Photo: Antepenultimate · CC BY-SA 4.0Living in Orwell, NY: what to set up and who to call
Orwell spans 3 ZIP codes; 13144 holds the most residents (80%). For an emergency, Oswego Hospital is the closest ER, 26.8 miles away.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Orwell, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in Orwell.
Power comes from National Grid
National Grid (Niagara Mohawk Power Corp.), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Orwell. 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.
Water comes from Orwell WD water system
The Orwell WD water system supplies Orwell: about 5% of residents live in its service area. About 95% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It draws ground water influenced by surface water and serves 150 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.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2025–Dec 2027, was 0.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. The highest in five years was 1.8 ppb. Results below detection are reported as 0, so 0 doesn’t mean no lead at any tap.
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. NY3704360.
3 home internet providers serve Orwell
92% of 852 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 0% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spectrum | Cable | 89% | 1,000/1,000 |
| Frontier | DSL | 54% | 45/3 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 20% | 300/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
We don’t have Orwell’s trash rules yet
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Orwell.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Most of Orwell (65%) is in Sandy Creek Central School District; parts are in Altmar-Parish-Williamstown Central School District (35%).
C−School gradeSee Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
Town hall and registering to vote
Who to call, and how to register.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Sep 2025; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Orwell spans 3 ZIP codes
ZIP codes where Orwell residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Orwell | ZIP’s residents in Orwell |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13144 | Richland, NY | 80% | 61% |
| 13302 | Altmar, NY | 18% | 12% |
| 13083 | Lacona, NY | 2% | 1% |
13426 is P.O. box or single-organization ZIP with no homes.
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
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 Orwell
Who supplies Orwell’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
The Orwell WD water system (EPA ID NY3704360). 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 0.0 ppb (Jan 2025–Dec 2027), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Orwell?
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 Orwell?
Spectrum, Frontier, Verizon (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Orwell?
13144 (80%), 13302 (18%), 13083 (2%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Orwell in?
Sandy Creek Central School District. Parts of the city are in Altmar-Parish-Williamstown Central School District.
How do I register to vote in Orwell?
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 Oswego 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.