Section of sign on highway between Sykesville, Pennsylvania and Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, 1940
Sykesville’s story
167 years in pictures
The archive holds 1 old photo or paper going back to 1940.
- 1859Sykesville is settled
SykesvillePA
This town of 1,078 people was settled in 1859.
Population
1,078
2025 Census estimate · −3% since 2020
Median home value
$91K
Census ACS
Household income
$45K
median
Median age
50.1
years
Jobs based here
314
A commuter town
Is Sykesville a good place to live?
Sykesville’s best subject grades are an A+ for cost of living and an A− for walkability; its weakest is a D for incomes. On cost of living, just 19 of Pennsylvania’s 1,749 towns do better. Sykesville has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Sykesville stand out
Where Sykesville beats most towns.
WalkabilityA−
More walkable than 77% of U.S. towns
7.3% of workers walk, bike or ride transit
EPA National Walkability Index; Census ACS.
Community nonprofits per 1,000 residents
Sykesville5.6
Typical U.S. town3.7
Typical PA town3.7
Civic lifeB+
52% more nonprofits per person
than the typical Pennsylvania town
Charities, civic groups and human services; churches not counted.
Small town
1,078 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Nearby towns
Winslow TownshipHenderson TownshipSykesville
How Sykesville grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Sykesville is from typical.
Cost of livingTypical home $91K, 1.6 years of the county’s $59K median household incomeA+Open →Jobs & income$45K median household incomeDOpen →WalkabilityEPA walkability 7.2 of 20; 10.6% of households have no carA−Open →HealthPenn Highlands Dubois 5.1 miles awayCOpen →SchoolsBeat 63% of Pennsylvania districts on tests and graduationBOpen →Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 38% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listBOpen →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors1 mile of trail; 1% conserved landB−Open →History2 notable people born hereB−Open →Civic life5.6 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsB+Open →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Sykesville: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Sykesville, and how to reach them.
PowerUnited Electric CoopEIAHIFLD · EIA
WaterSykesville Borough water system1 health-based violation in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet4 providers99% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Sykesville’s trash rules yet
Register to voteOnlineIn Pennsylvania you can register online until 15 days before Election Day, in person until 15 days before Election Day, or by mail (received 15 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereJefferson County Voter RegistrarJefferson County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Apr 2026
ZIP code1586515865 100%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Sykesville.
Work & commuteJobs & income grade D
Sykesville has 0.7 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Sykesville’s average commute is 21 minutes. Just 5% of the town’s working residents have a job in town. Among residents here, 14% live below the poverty line, against 7.6% in Pennsylvania’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. Also worth knowing: jobs in Sykesville grew by 114 from 2013 to 2023, reaching 314.
5%work in town
| Sykesville | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $45,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 14% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.8% | 6.3% | 8% |
Where working residents work
In Sykesville5%
DuBois17%
Sandy Township14%
Reynoldsville6%
Winslow Township6%
8 mi
median commute distance
314
jobs based in Sykesville
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
A−
Walkability grade: more walkable than 77% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
HealthC
On CDC estimates, Sykesville is less healthy than 73% of U.S. towns
In Sykesville, 19% of adults binge drink. Among adults in the town, 21% smoke cigarettes, where Pennsylvania’s towns sit at 17% and U.S. towns at 14%. 16% of adults in Sykesville report frequent physical distress; 19% report frequent mental distress.
27%healthier than U.S. townsCHealth Grade
| Sykesville | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 17% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 16% | 17% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 19% | 19% |
26 measures vs. Pennsylvania
0 better17 too close to call9 worse
| What stands out | Sykesville | PA |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 10.8% | 7.7% |
| More smokers | 20.8% | 15.8% |
| More adults with heart disease | 9.2% | 7.4% |
Penn Highlands Dubois
5.1 mi away · emergency room
2 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Climate
Expect snowy winters and pleasant summers in Sykesville
Expect July afternoons of 81° and January nights of 17°, with about 63 inches of snow a winter.
63″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter19–36°
Spring35–59°
Summer56–80°
Fall39–61°
Oct 14
typical first frost
May 6
typical last frost
+1.3°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade B
Sykesville faces a low natural-hazard risk, led by inland flooding
FEMA expects less storm and flood damage in Sykesville than in 62% of U.S. communities. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Sykesville once, in 2004. 73% of the town’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding, followed by lightning at 7%. Flood insurance has paid out on 8 claims in the town since 1978.
38risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingLightningCold waves
8
paid flood claims since 1978
1
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Safety
Sykesville stands out in Pennsylvania and nationally, with property crime lower than most
No violent crimes were reported in 2025. Sykesville's reported crime rate is well below Pennsylvania's.
| Sykesville | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0 per 1,000 residents | 5.7 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
Violent crime per 1,000 residents
Sykesville0
Pennsylvania2.3
U.S.3.3
Property crime per 1,000 residents
Sykesville0
Pennsylvania13.6
U.S.15.5
0
violent crimes reported in 2025
0
property crimes reported in 2025
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
OutdoorsB−
In Sykesville, 0.7% of the land is conserved
1.2 miles of trail. The concentration of trails in Sykesville is 0.8 miles per square mile.
0.7%conserved
| Sykesville | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 0.7% | 8.2% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.8 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
0.7%
conserved · 7 of 1,014 acres
1.2 mi
of trails · 0.8 per sq mi
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
HousingCost of living grade A+
Compared with most of Pennsylvania and the rest of the country, the median rent in Sykesville is lower
For households in Sykesville, the share who live in a home they own is 64%.
$210Kmedian sale price
| Sykesville | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $674 a month | $1,115 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 64% | 78% | 73% |
0
homes sold in July
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Sykesville
19pages on Sykesville
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Sykesville
About 2 of every 100 Sykesville residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Pennsylvania.
A commuter town
95% of working residents leave Sykesville for work
Where Sykesville’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
314jobs based in Sykesville
5%of working residents work in town
8 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
About Sykesville
Borough in Pennsylvania, US
Sykesville is a borough in Jefferson County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, Sykesville had a population of 1,115. Named for Jacob B. Sykes, an early resident, Sykesville was the birthplace of Olga Madar (1915–1996), the first woman to become a vice-president in the United Auto Workers (1970) and founder of the Coalition of Labor Union Women (1974).
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Established
- 1859
- Area
- 1.6 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,352 ft
- ZIP code
- 15865
Questions about Sykesville
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Sykesville, PA expensive?
Not for the area. The typical home is worth about $91,000, 68% 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+.
What is Sykesville, PA known for?
2 notable people were born here, including Elmer Madar and Frank Smeal.