Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 2,911, settled in 1824. A regional job hub with 2,203 jobs.
Dresden gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $180K, 3.5 years of the Martin area’s $52K median household income. It grades C+ overall, 60th of 175 graded towns in Tennessee. The low prices come with trade-offs. Residents are less healthy than 94% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates, and FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 79% of U.S. communities, with earthquakes at the top. On civic life, just 1 of Tennessee’s 232 towns do better. 14% of residents are under 18 in Dresden, below both the Tennessee town median (22%) and the median of U.S. towns (22%). Capt. William Sims House (Additional Documentation) and Cary Lawn is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Dresden beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Where Dresden’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Tennessee), ordered by how far Dresden is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 633 in 1850, a low of 314 in 1880, 3,019 in 2020. The archive holds 9 old photos and papers going back to 1930 and 2 maps from 1952 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Dresden, 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 Dresden.
Dresden draws workers from Martin and beyond and fares better on crime within Tennessee than nationally, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Tennessee (mostly earthquakes).
18% of adults report frequent physical distress in Dresden. Dresden beats the Tennessee average on 4 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 8. 30% of adults have been diagnosed with depression in Dresden.
| Dresden | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 16% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 29% | 23% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 24% | 19% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 12% |
| What stands out | Dresden | TN |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 9.9% | 13.3% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 6.8% | 9.1% |
| More adults with COPD | 11.8% | 8.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Weakley County school district. Three of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Dresden High School, with 301 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dresden ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 440 | A− |
| Dresden High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 301 | B |
| Dresden Middle SchoolTop results in townGrades 5–8 | Grades 5–8 | 335 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within TN on state tests and graduation
2,203 jobs are based in Dresden, 2.1 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
About one in 4 of Dresden’s working residents works in town. The top destinations are Martin (24%), Union City (7%) and Memphis (4%). Half commute less than 11 miles.
| Dresden | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 23% | 12% | 8% |
| Median household income | $51,000 | $61,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 14% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Home values rose 42% in five years, to about $180K, against 23% across Tennessee.
Typical home values rose 8.3% in the year to September 2026. The median rent in Dresden is $725 a month.
| Dresden | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $725 a month | $950 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 64% | 66% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 94% of Tennessee towns; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on.
Since 1998, 3 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Dresden.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Dresden has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. Dresden’s July high is 89°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
At 16 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 71% of Tennessee’s graded towns. Violent crime is rare: 3 reported in 2025, 1 per 1,000 residents.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Just 0 of its 3,794 acres are conserved, so there is little public open land in Dresden itself; its outdoors grade is C−.
0.5 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Wilson Park | 0.3 mi | 15 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
2 within 15 miles of the center of Dresden
About 4 of every 100 Dresden residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Tennessee.
6 notable people were born in Dresden.
Town in Tennessee, United States
Dresden is a town in and the county seat of Weakley County, Tennessee, United States. As of the 2020 census, Dresden had a population of 3,019.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Dresden grades C+ overall, better than 45% of U.S. towns and #60 of 175 in Tennessee. It grades D for health, B for safety and B+ for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A.
6 notable people were born here, including Popeye Jones and Lin Dunn.
