Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Great Bend’s midpoint age is 56.5 years, where Pennsylvania’s towns sit at 43.2 years and U.S. towns at 40.5 years. Great Bend has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
Where Great Bend beats most towns.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Census counts: 855 in 1870, a peak of 1,136 in 1880, 627 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1880 and 3 maps from 1968 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Great Bend, 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 Great Bend.
Paid flood insurance claims in Great Bend since 1979: 14. FEMA puts 87% of the town’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding. Federal aid has come to Great Bend households in 4 declared disasters; the latest was in 2011.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
For Great Bend, the middle household income is $46,000. Most people who work leave Great Bend to do it: just 2% work in town. Employers in Great Bend shed 74 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 68. Just over a tenth of Great Bend residents live below the poverty line.
| Great Bend | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $46,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.6% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Great Bend’s July high stands at 82°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
In a town this small, a few incidents move the numbers a lot, so rates aren't shown. No violent or property crimes were reported in Great Bend in 2025.
Great Bend is small, so we show counts rather than rates.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
For adults in Great Bend, the share who have diabetes is 13%. CDC measures, 26 in all: Great Bend beats Pennsylvania on 2 and trails on 8. In Great Bend, 15% of adults report frequent physical distress, and 17% smoke cigarettes.
| Great Bend | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 34% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 17% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 19% | 19% |
| What stands out | Great Bend | PA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 10.8% | 14.5% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 83% | 79.2% |
| More adults with COPD | 10.3% | 7.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. SPC Lee A. Wiegand Memorial Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Great Bend. Close and well known come first.
39 mi National Historic SiteSteamtown National Historic Site61K visitors a year
12 mi Stadium & arenaBroome County Veterans Memorial Arena20 mi Ski areaElk Mountain Ski Resort28 runs · 908 ft vertical11 mi Zoo & aquariumBinghamton Zoo at Ross Park
34 mi MuseumFrench Azilum
40 mi City parkNay Aug ParkSteamtown National Historic Site: National Park Service, Public domain · Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena: Bmoore2009 at English Wikipedia, Public domain · French Azilum: Nicholas A. Tonelli from Northeast Pennsylvania, USA, CC BY 2.0 · Nay Aug Park: The Mebane Greeting Card Co., Wilkes-Barre, PA., Public domain
2 within 15 miles of the center of Great Bend
About 6 of every 100 Great Bend residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Pennsylvania.
Where Great Bend’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
3 notable people were born in Great Bend.
Borough in Pennsylvania, United States
Great Bend is a borough in Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania, United States, 39 miles (63 km) north of Scranton. According to 2020 Census data, Great Bend's population was 634, down 13.6% from 2010. Great Bend sits along the Susquehanna River, less than two miles (about 3 km) from the New York State border, and is located directly off Interstate 81. Several small manufacturers also call Great Bend home. Great Bend is considered a bedroom community of the Binghamton, NY metropolitan area. Downtown Binghamton is roughly 11 miles (18 km) from Great Bend. The borough has three public parks. Billy Greenwood Memorial Park on Kilrow Avenue and Veterans' Memorial Park on Spring St. overlook the Susq…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Great Bend has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
3 notable people were born here, including Ray Kellogg and Fanny DuBois Chase.
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