Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Brownsville’s best subject grades are an A for cost of living, an A− for walkability, and an A+ for history; its weakest is a D for hazard risk. 32% of residents live below the poverty line in Brownsville, against 7.6% in Pennsylvania’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. Only 20 of Pennsylvania’s 1,751 towns score lower on hazard risk. Brownsville's public schools trail 89% of Pennsylvania towns on state tests and graduation. On history, just 69 of Pennsylvania’s 1,749 towns do better. Brownsville's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 85% of U.S. towns. Brownsville has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Brownsville beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Bowman's Castle
Census counts: 698 in 1810, a peak of 8,015 in 1940, 2,185 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1815 and 6 maps from 1902 on.
7 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Brownsville is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Brownsville, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Brownsville.
23% of Brownsville adults smoke cigarettes, where Pennsylvania’s towns sit at 17% and U.S. towns at 14%. 41% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Brownsville. Brownsville beats the Pennsylvania average on 0 of 26 CDC measures and trails it on 16.
| Brownsville | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 17% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 14% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 16% | 17% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 19% | 19% |
| What stands out | Brownsville | PA |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 10.1% | 5.8% |
| More adults with COPD | 11.7% | 7.7% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 22% | 14.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Brownsville’s FEMA risk score is 88 of 100. Since 1980, 36 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Brownsville.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Most working residents leave Brownsville for work: only 7% work in town. The median household income in Brownsville is $32,000. Since 2013, Brownsville has lost 136 jobs, to 578 in 2023.
| Brownsville | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $32,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 6.8% | 6.3% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Brownsville has chilly winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 22° and about 28 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Brownsville's reported crime rate is well below Pennsylvania's. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. Violent crime is rare: 2 reported in 2025.
| Brownsville | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 6.7 per 1,000 residents | 5.7 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
48% of Brownsville households own their home.
| Brownsville | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 48% | 78% | 73% |
| Median rent | $670 a month | $1,115 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Brownsville. Close and well known come first.
Big draw24 mi MuseumFallingwater
Big draw30 mi Stadium & arenaAcrisure Stadium
26 mi Theme parkKennywood
30 mi LandmarkFort Duquesne
30 mi Stadium & arenaPNC Park
30 mi Stadium & arenaPPG Paints ArenaFallingwater: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain · Acrisure Stadium: Fo2grfr, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Kennywood: Ski2007 of English Wikipedia, Public domain · Fort Duquesne: Sébastien Paquin, CC BY-SA 3.0 · PNC Park: alpineinc, CC BY 2.0 · PPG Paints Arena: Jleedev, CC BY-SA 4.0
2 within 15 miles of the center of Brownsville
About 4 of every 100 Brownsville residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Pennsylvania.
Where Brownsville’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
7 places in Brownsville on the National Register of Historic Places.
24 notable people were born in Brownsville.
Borough in Pennsylvania, US
Brownsville is a borough in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, United States, first settled in 1785 as the site of a trading post a few years after the defeat of the Iroquois enabled a resumption of westward migration after the American Revolutionary War. The trading post soon became a tavern and inn and was receiving emigrants heading west, as it was located above the cut bank overlooking the first ford that could be reached to those descending from the Allegheny Mountains. Brownsville is located 40 miles (64 km) south of Pittsburgh along the east bank of the Monongahela River. According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough of Brownsville has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.8 km2…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Brownsville.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brownsville · Brownsville Township | — | — | A | — | D | D |
| Hiller | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Luzerne Township | #807 | C+ | A− | A+ | D | C− |
| West Brownsville | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Centerville | #301 | A− | A+ | A | C | B− |
Brownsville has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Brownsville reports no FBI crime data of its own. Hiller and West Brownsville aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Brownsville Township and Brownsville are one community, graded once. Compare Brownsville with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Not for the area. The typical home is worth about $69,000, 76% below the Pennsylvania 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 A.
24 notable people were born here, including Philander C. Knox and Vinnie Colaiuta.
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