Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Newbern gives you more for your money than most places: homes are within reach, about $199K for a typical one, or 3.4 years of the Dyersburg area’s $58K median household income. It grades B− overall, 59th of 175 graded towns in Tennessee. The low prices come with trade-offs. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 87% of U.S. communities, with earthquakes at the top, and residents are less healthy than 86% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. On the plus side, its public schools beat 85% of Tennessee towns on state tests and graduation. Newbern’s average trip to work is 17 minutes, against 25 minutes in Tennessee’s towns and 25 minutes across U.S. towns. Newbern has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Newbern Illinois Central Depot and Cole-Boston House.
Where Newbern beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Newbern Elementary School | PK–5 | 527 |
| Northview Middle School | 6–8 | 445 |
| Dyer County High School | 9–12 | 1,052 |
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Tennessee), ordered by how far Newbern is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 506 in 1880, 3,349 in 2020. The archive holds 3 old photos and papers going back to 1920 and 2 maps from 1952 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Newbern, 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 Newbern.
Newbern pairs an A for schools with modest home prices and fares better on crime within Tennessee than nationally, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Tennessee (mostly earthquakes).
Within Tennessee it is less healthy than 57% of the 176 graded towns: much of Tennessee scores lower on these measures.
31% of adults have been diagnosed with depression in Newbern. Newbern beats the Tennessee average on 0 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 21% of adults report frequent mental distress in Newbern.
| Newbern | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 29% | 23% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 20% | 17% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 19% | 14% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 38% | 36% |
| What stands out | Newbern | TN |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 19.7% | 14.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its A for schools comes with an A for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $199K.
Its public schools are run by the Dyer County school district. Its three schools are below. The largest public high school is Dyer County High School, with 1,052 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newbern Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 527 | A− |
| Dyer County High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,052 | B+ |
| Northview Middle SchoolTop results in townGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 445 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within TN on state tests and graduation
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 99% of Tennessee towns; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on.
Only 2 of the 176 Tennessee towns we compare have a higher FEMA risk score than Newbern.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Typical home values rose 5.6% in the year to September 2026. Newbern’s median rent is $825 a month.
| Newbern | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $825 a month | $950 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 67% | 65% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
1.3 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. The biggest park or preserve is Oakview Recreation Park, at 28 acres.
| Newbern | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 1.2% | 1.8% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Oakview Recreation Park | 0.6 mi | 28 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
At 26.9 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 51% of Tennessee’s graded towns.
The violent crime rate in Newbern is 2.8 per 1,000 residents.
| Newbern | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.8 per 1,000 residents | 2.6 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 11.8 per 1,000 residents | 11.5 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Newbern has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 89°, January nights drop to 29° and about 6 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 1,516 working residents takes 16.9 minutes, against 25.7 across Tennessee.
Most working residents leave Newbern for work: only 11% work in town. 18% of Newbern residents live below the poverty line. Jobs based in Newbern grew to 1,260 in 2023, 75 more than in 2013.
| Newbern | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 18% | 14% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $58,000 | $61,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 11% | 12% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the Tennessee average. Newbern has lost 3.7% of its people since 2020, down to 3,222 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 25% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 31% across Tennessee.
| Newbern | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 34 years | 40 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 14% | 18% | 18% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 25% | 23% | 29% |
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±6.6 points. Across Tennessee, 50.9% of residents are women. Among residents 75 and older, 71% are men (TN 42%).
| Newbern | TN | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 12% | 11.9% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 13.6% | 10.3% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9% | 8.9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 16% | 13.8% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.7% | 12.8% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 14% | 12.4% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 6.7% | 12.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 6.5% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.5% | 6.7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 11.7% | 10% | 10.4% |
| High school | 36% | 31.2% | 26% |
| Some college | 20% | 19.9% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 7.4% | 7.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 18.4% | 19.4% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 6.5% | 11.7% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 3,200, single groups can be off by several points
1 within 15 miles of the center of Newbern
About 3 of every 100 Newbern residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across Tennessee.
3 notable people were born in Newbern.
Town in Tennessee, United States
Newbern is a town in Dyer County, Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 3,349.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Newbern grades B− overall, better than 45% of U.S. towns and #59 of 175 in Tennessee. It grades D for health, C for safety and A for schools. Hazard risk 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.
3 notable people were born here, including John Clyde Bowen and William R. Lucas.
