Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Walton grades D overall, 721st among New York's 745 graded towns, mostly because of incomes and health. The median household income is $49K, and 25% of residents live below the poverty line. Residents are less healthy than 79% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. It also has a long history, with 6 places on the National Register. 25% of residents live below the poverty line in Walton, above both New York’s towns (9.5%) and U.S. towns (9.6%). Only 26 of New York’s 1,216 towns score lower on hazard risk. Bear Spring Mountain Wildlife Management Area, at 2,605 acres with 11.8 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
Where Walton beats most towns.
Census counts: 1,432 in 1820, 5,270 in 2020. The archive holds 1 old photo or paper and 2 maps from 1923 on.
6 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Walton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Walton, 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 Walton.
Walton is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of New York (mostly inland flooding) and has poverty well above the New York rate.
Against the 5,472 U.S. towns with household incomes like Walton’s, it is healthier than 52%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income.
17% of adults report frequent physical distress in Walton. Walton beats the New York average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 17. 23% of adults say their health is fair or poor in Walton.
| Walton | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 14% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 34% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 37% | 36% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 25% | 25% |
| What stands out | Walton | NY |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 11.1% | 6% |
| More smokers | 18.3% | 11.3% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 20.1% | 12.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Walton Central School District. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Townsend Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 348 | C− |
| Walton High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 2–12 | Grades 2–12 | 271 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 98% of New York towns, with expected losses of about $930 per resident a year; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on.
Walton’s FEMA risk score is 83 of 100. Since 1982, 23 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Walton.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The average commute for its 2,005 working residents takes 17.4 minutes, against 32.6 across New York.
About one in 4 of Walton’s working residents works in town. The average trip to work in Walton is 17 minutes. Jobs based in Walton fell to 1,381 in 2023, 77 fewer than in 2013.
| Walton | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 27% | 10% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $49,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Bear Spring Mountain Wildlife Management Area | 11.8 mi | 2,605 |
| 2. Beerston Unit | 1.6 mi | 732 |
| 3. More Park Unit | 0.7 mi | 128 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Walton has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 80°, January nights drop to 13° and about 71 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
1 within 15 miles of the center of Walton
About 2 of every 100 Walton residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
6 places in Walton on the National Register of Historic Places.
3 notable people were born in Walton.
Town in New York, United States
Walton is a town in Delaware County, New York, United States. The population was 5,270 at the 2020 census. The town is in the west-central part of the county and contains the village of Walton. The town claims to be the "Scarecrow Capital of the World." Walton was formed in 1797 from the town of Franklin. The original settlement, near the site of the village of Walton, occurred in 1785.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Walton.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walton | #721 | D | B− | — | C− | C− |
| Tompkins | — | — | B | — | C− | C |
| Hamden | — | — | C | — | B− | B− |
| Colchester | — | — | C+ | A | C− | B− |
| Franklin | — | — | B | — | B+ | B |
| Sidney | #697 | D | B− | — | C | C+ |
Tompkins, Hamden, Colchester and Franklin have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Walton, Tompkins, Hamden, Franklin and Sidney report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Walton with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Walton grades D overall, better than 5% of U.S. towns and #721 of 745 in New York. It grades C− for health and C− for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D−.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
3 notable people were born here, including Joel T. Headley and Irving Francis Wood.
