Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Watertown earns a D−, 724th among New York's 745 graded towns, mostly because of safety and schools. Its crime rate is higher than 94% of U.S. towns, with 131 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. Its public schools trail 93% of New York towns on state tests and graduation. In its favor, it has 17 miles of trail. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 94% of U.S. towns, with 14 places on the National Register. 44% of working residents work locally in Watertown, above both New York’s towns (10%) and U.S. towns (8%). Its National Register listings include Jefferson County Courthouse Complex and Paddock Arcade. Watertown is more walkable than 86% of U.S. towns.
Where Watertown beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Census counts: 9,336 in 1870, a peak of 34,350 in 1950, 24,685 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1850 and 5 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 Watertown is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Watertown, 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 Watertown.
Watertown draws workers from Le Ray and beyond, gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns and is healthier than towns with similar incomes.
The trail density in Watertown is 1.8 miles per square mile. The biggest place to walk is Thompson Park, 418 acres with 9.5 miles of trail.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Thompson Park | 9.5 mi | 418 |
| 2. w | 0.8 mi | 12 |
| 3. Adams Recreational Park | — | 17 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Watertown City School District. Two of its 11 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harold T Wiley SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 5–6 | Grades 5–6 | 614 | C− |
| Watertown Senior High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,181 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
The median property tax bill is $2,710, against $6,582 across New York, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
The typical Watertown home is worth about $206,000, up 4.5% in a year, 61% below the New York typical home. 41% of households own their home in Watertown.
| Watertown | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 41% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $967 a month | $1,103 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Property crime runs at 39.4 per 1,000 residents, about twice the New York rate, most of it theft.
Watertown’s property crime rate is 39.4 per 1,000 residents. Watertown reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 94% report less. Watertown’s violent crime rate is 5.5 per 1,000 residents.
| Watertown | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 39.4 per 1,000 residents | 7.5 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 5.5 per 1,000 residents | 0.8 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
12,868 jobs are based in Watertown, 1.7 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 16.3 minutes, against 32.6 across New York.
20% of Watertown residents live below the poverty line. Since 2013, Watertown has lost 2,206 jobs, to 12,868 in 2023. The top destinations are Watertown (9%), Le Ray (3%) and Pamelia (3%).
| Watertown | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 16 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 20% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 4.5% | 12% | 11% |
| Median household income | $52,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 75% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 15 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Watertown.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Watertown weather station records that 116 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 98% of U.S. towns.
Watertown has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 80° and January nights drop to 10°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Against the 6,381 U.S. towns with household incomes like Watertown’s, it is healthier than 69%, so its C isn’t only a matter of income.
Watertown beats the New York average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 13.
| Watertown | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 37% | 36% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 33% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 17% | 16% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | Watertown | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with high cholesterol | 33.3% | 37.7% |
| More smokers | 16.3% | 11.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Watertown
About 7 of every 100 Watertown residents are enrolled in college, about the same as New York.
14 places in Watertown on the National Register of Historic Places.
31 notable people were born in Watertown.
City in New York, United States
Watertown is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, New York, United States. It is approximately 25 miles (40 km) south of the Thousand Islands, along the Black River, about 5 miles (8 km) east of where it flows into Lake Ontario. The city is bordered by the town of Watertown to the south, east, and west, and is served by the Watertown International Airport and the Watertown Daily Times newspaper. In the middle of Watertown lies the Public Square Historic District, which was built in 1805 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1984. Watertown is located 13 miles (21 kilometers) southwest of the U.S. Army base at Fort Drum; it is the service and shopping…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Watertown.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Watertown | #724 | D− | C+ | D | D | C |
| Watertown | #732 | D− | D | — | C− | C+ |
| Pamelia | #375 | B− | A− | — | C+ | B− |
| Le Ray | #622 | C− | C− | — | C+ | B+ |
Watertown, Pamelia and Le Ray report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Watertown with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Watertown grades D− overall, better than 4% of U.S. towns and #724 of 745 in New York. It grades C for health, D for safety and D for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D.
That is 3.1 years of the area's median household income ($66,301 across the Watertown-Fort Drum, NY metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.
31 notable people were born here, including Allen Dulles and Robert Lansing.
