Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Theresa’s weakest is walkability. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 92% of U.S. towns. Its overall C+ puts it 492nd of 745 in New York. Nationally, it does better than 37% of U.S. towns. Incomes are weaker too — the median household income is $70K, and 11% of residents live below the poverty line. Where it does best is cost of living: a typical home costs about $174K, 2.6 years of the Watertown metro’s $66K median household income. The biggest park or preserve is Indian River Wildlife Management Area, at 927 acres. This New York town has 1 place on the National Register.
Figures: home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · OpenStreetMap · National Register of Historic Places.
Where Theresa beats most towns.
Where Theresa’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Theresa is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 2,342 in 1850, 2,648 in 2020. The archive holds 3 old photos and papers going back to 1864 and 3 maps from 1903 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Theresa, 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 Theresa.
Theresa gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and sends most of its workers to Watertown and beyond.
Theresa has 164 jobs for its 910 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. The average commute takes 26.3 minutes, against 32.6 across New York.
3.7% of working residents work locally in Theresa. Half commute less than 18 miles. The top destinations are Watertown (16%), Philadelphia (12%) and Alexandria (8%).
| Theresa | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 3.7% | 10% | 8% |
| Median household income | $70,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its one school is below. Public schools: the Indian River Central School District. 163 students attend Theresa’s public school.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Theresa Primary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–3 | Grades PK–3 | 163 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
18 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves. In Theresa, the concentration of trails is 0.3 miles per square mile, close to both New York’s towns (0.4) and U.S. towns (0.4).
| Theresa | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 6.7% | 5.2% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Indian River Wildlife Management Area | — | 927 |
| 2. Coyote Flats State Forest | — | 474 |
| 3. Santway Park | 0.1 mi | 6 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The Watertown weather station, 20 miles away, records that 116 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 98% of U.S. towns.
In Theresa, the July high is 80°F, near the New York town median (81°F) and below the median of U.S. towns (85°F).
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Against the 10,484 U.S. towns with household incomes like Theresa’s, it is healthier than 77%, so its B isn’t only a matter of income.
Theresa: 16% of adults say their health is fair or poor. On the CDC’s 32 measures, Theresa is ahead of New York on 6 and behind on 9. Two figures for adults in the town: 41% sleep under 7 hours, 38% have obesity.
| Theresa | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 17% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 37% | 36% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 33% | 35% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 32% | 33% |
| What stands out | Theresa | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 12% | 17.2% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 5.6% | 7.9% |
| More adults with obesity | 38.1% | 28.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Households in Theresa have drawn federal disaster aid in 2 declared disasters, most recently in 2024. Storm and flood damage is expected to run higher than in 60% of U.S. communities. 84% of the town’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
None within 15 miles of Theresa; the nearest are
About 6 of every 100 Theresa residents are enrolled in college, about the same as New York.
7 notable people were born in Theresa.
Town in New York, United States
Theresa is a town in Jefferson County, New York, United States. The population was 2,648 at the 2020 census, down from 2,905 in 2010. The town is named after Theresa La Ray, the daughter of an original landowner. The town of Theresa contains a village also named Theresa. The town and village are in the northern part of the county, north-northeast of Watertown.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with Theresa.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Theresa | #492 | C+ | B+ | — | C+ | B |
| Alexandria | #229 | B+ | A− | — | B | B |
| Antwerp | — | — | A | — | C+ | C+ |
| Redwood | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Philadelphia | — | — | B | — | C+ | B |
| Le Ray | #622 | C− | C− | — | C+ | B+ |
| Orleans | #480 | C+ | B | — | C+ | B− |
| Rossie | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Antwerp and Philadelphia have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Theresa, Alexandria, Antwerp, Philadelphia, Le Ray and Orleans report no FBI crime data of their own. Redwood and Rossie aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Theresa with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Theresa grades C+ overall, better than 37% of U.S. towns and #492 of 745 in New York. It grades B for health and C+ for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a D.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.
7 notable people were born here, including Roswell Pettibone Flower and Crawford S. Holling.