Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
50% more nonprofits per person than the typical Oregon town.
The best of Mill City’s subject grades are an A+ for civic life and an A− for the outdoors; the weakest is a D for hazard risk. Only 3 of the 143 Oregon towns we compare have a higher average trip to work than Mill City. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 77% of U.S. towns. Among 143 Oregon towns, just 6 have a lower share of adults with a bachelor’s degree than Mill City. Only 6 of Oregon’s 161 towns score higher on civic life. Mill City has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Hinkle-Reid House. Mill City has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Mill City beats most towns.
Hinkle-Reid HouseWhere Mill City’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Oregon), ordered by how far Mill City is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,792 in 1950, 1,971 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 2 maps from 1955 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Mill City, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Oct 2, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Mill City.
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 82% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its public schools are run by Santiam Canyon SD 129J. One of its 2 schools is below, with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Oregon Charter Academy, with 2,345 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Santiam Junior/Senior High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 6–12 | Grades 6–12 | 319 | B− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within OR on state tests and graduation
Most working residents leave Mill City for work: only 7% work in town. 18% of residents live below the poverty line in Mill City, where Oregon’s towns sit at 11% and U.S. towns at 9.6%. Since 2013, Mill City has added 298 jobs, to 496 in 2023.
| Mill City | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 18% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $69,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 10% | 14% | 11% |
| Working residents who work in town | 7.1% | 9.8% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The typical Mill City home is worth about $364,000, up 1.6% in a year, 26% below the Oregon typical home.
| Mill City | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 68% | 65% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,402 a month | $1,414 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Mill City has mild winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. At 80°F, Mill City’s July high is against 82°F in Oregon’s towns and 85°F across U.S. towns.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
0.6 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. The biggest park or preserve is Kimmel Park, at 24 acres.
| Mill City | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.7 miles per square mile | 0.8 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.9% | 4.4% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Kimmel Park | 0.4 mi | 24 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Mill City beats the Oregon average on 1 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 30% of Mill City adults have been diagnosed with depression.
| Mill City | Oregon towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 27% | 23% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 35% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 73% | 72% | 79% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 18% | 17% |
| What stands out | Mill City | OR |
|---|---|---|
| More adults screened for colon cancer | 68.3% | 63.4% |
| More adults with obesity | 39.8% | 33.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
None within 15 miles of Mill City; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Mill City residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Oregon.
City in Oregon, United States
Mill City is a city in Linn and Marion counties in the U.S. state of Oregon on Oregon Route 22. The population was 1,971 at the 2020 census. It is on the North Santiam River, downstream from Detroit Lake. The Linn County portion of Mill City is part of the Albany–Lebanon Micropolitan Statistical Area, while the Marion County portion is part of the Salem Metropolitan Statistical Area. The City of Mill City contracts through the Linn County Sheriff's Office for local law enforcement, however, it does have its own Mill City Fire Department and other public works departments. In September 2020, Mill City suffered extensive damage from the Santiam Fire.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
50% more nonprofits per person than the typical Oregon town.
That is 4.8 years of the area's median household income ($76,329 across the Albany, OR 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.