Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Sandy Creek’s weakest subject is incomes: the median household income is $67K, and just over a fifth of residents live below the poverty line. The town’s overall grade is D, better than 7% of U.S. towns. The ranking puts it 712th of 745 in New York. Schools are weaker too: its schools rank behind 82% of the state's. Cost of living is where it shines: a typical home costs about $162K, 2.1 years of the Syracuse metro’s $75K median household income. Its National Register listings include Sandy Creek Historic District and Newton M. Pitt House. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 91% of U.S. towns, with 14 places on the National Register.
Figures: home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · schools, state test and graduation results · National Register of Historic Places.
Where Sandy Creek beats most towns.
Census counts: 1,839 in 1830, a peak of 3,939 in 2010, 646 in 2020. The archive holds 3 old photos and papers going back to 1867 and 4 maps from 1895 on.
14 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Sandy Creek is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Sandy Creek, 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 Sandy Creek.
Sandy Creek trades lower home prices for longer drives to work and gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns, but it is a long drive from an emergency room.
Public schools: the Sandy Creek Central School District. Two of its 3 schools are shown below, with the reason for each. The 3 public schools in Sandy Creek teach 784 students between them.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sandy Creek Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 379 | C+ |
| Sandy Creek High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 230 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
The nearest emergency room, Oswego Hospital, is 24.5 miles away in a straight line.
In Sandy Creek, just over two in five adults sleep under 7 hours, where New York’s towns sit at 37% and U.S. towns at 36%. Just over a fifth of adults say their health is fair or poor locally.
| Sandy Creek | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 13% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 14% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 25% | 25% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 37% | 36% |
| What stands out | Sandy Creek | NY |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 10.1% | 6% |
| More smokers | 18.3% | 11.3% |
| More adults with heart disease | 8.5% | 6.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The top destinations are Richland (12%), Syracuse (9%) and Oswego (5%). Just 11% of Sandy Creek’s working residents have a job in town. Among residents locally, 22% live below the poverty line. Jobs based in Sandy Creek grew to 585 in 2023, 310 more than in 2013.
| Sandy Creek | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 22% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $67,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 11% | 10% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Federal aid has come to Sandy Creek households in 3 declared disasters; the latest was in 2017. Compared with 73% of U.S. communities, expected storm and flood damage locally is lower. Since 1979, 18 flood insurance claims have been paid out locally. FEMA puts 87% of the town’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Oswego weather station, 24 miles away, records that 140 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 99% of U.S. towns.
The peak summer temperature is 80°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The biggest park or preserve is Sandy Creek State Forest, at 451 acres. Across 2 parks and preserves: 2.0 miles of trail. Parks and preserves locally: 2, covering 692 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Sandy Creek State Forest | — | 451 |
| 2. Sandy Island Beach State Park | 0.1 mi | 241 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Homes are within reach (B for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 32 miles. At 2.1 years of the Syracuse metro’s $75K median household income, the typical home costs less against local pay than in 86% of New York towns; that ratio is one input to its B for cost of living.
Sandy Creek’s midpoint rent is $794 a month, below both New York’s towns ($1,103 a month) and U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). In Sandy Creek, 73% of households own their home, near both the New York town median (75%) and the median of U.S. towns (73%).
| Sandy Creek | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $794 a month | $1,103 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 73% | 75% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
None within 15 miles of Sandy Creek; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Sandy Creek residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
Where Sandy Creek’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
14 places in Sandy Creek on the National Register of Historic Places.
5 notable people were born in Sandy Creek.
Town in New York, United States
Sandy Creek is a town in Oswego County, New York, United States. The population was 3,939 at the time of the 2010 census. The name is derived from the Sandy Creek stream passing through the area. The Town of Sandy Creek is in the northwestern part of the county. The village of Sandy Creek is located within the town.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Sandy Creek.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sandy Creek | #712 | D | B | — | C− | C− |
| Richland | #637 | C− | B | — | C | C |
| Boylston | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Ellisburg | #430 | B− | B+ | — | B− | B− |
| Orwell | — | — | A | — | C− | D |
Orwell has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Sandy Creek, Richland, Ellisburg and Orwell report no FBI crime data of their own. Boylston isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Sandy Creek with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Sandy Creek grades D overall, better than 7% of U.S. towns and #712 of 745 in New York. It grades C− for health and C− for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D.
The typical home is worth about $162,000, 69% below the New York typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
5 notable people were born here, including Clarence D. Clark and Irving G. Hubbs.
