Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Oneida earns a D−, 165th among Tennessee's 175 graded towns, mostly because of health and incomes. Residents are less healthy than 97% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. The median household income is $49K, and 28% of residents live below the poverty line. One bright spot: natural-hazard risk is low. 28% of residents live below the poverty line in Oneida, against 14% in Tennessee’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. Of the 177 Tennessee towns we compare, none has a lower January low than Oneida. Louis E. Bryant House is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Oneida beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Tennessee), ordered by how far Oneida is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 943 in 1920, 3,787 in 2020. The archive holds 8 old photos and papers going back to 1977 and a map from 1952 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Oneida, 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 Oneida.
Oneida carries less natural-hazard risk than nearly all of Tennessee (mostly inland flooding) and fares better on crime within Tennessee than nationally, but it has poverty well above the Tennessee rate.
24% of Oneida adults smoke cigarettes. Oneida beats the Tennessee average on 0 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 17. 19% of Oneida adults report frequent physical distress.
| Oneida | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 19% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 16% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 29% | 23% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 20% | 17% |
| What stands out | Oneida | TN |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 29.3% | 14.6% |
| More adults with COPD | 13.3% | 8.6% |
| More smokers | 23.8% | 17.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Oneida school district. Two of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Oneida High School, with 363 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oneida ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 756 | A− |
| Oneida High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 363 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within TN on state tests and graduation
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk lower than 95% of Tennessee towns; that rating is what its A− for hazard risk is built on.
The FEMA risk score in Oneida is 14 of 100.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The typical Oneida home is worth about $205,000, up 4.1% in a year, 38% below the Tennessee typical home. Oneida’s median rent is $824 a month.
| Oneida | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $824 a month | $950 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 65% | 66% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
At 30 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 58% of Tennessee’s graded towns.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
January nights average 25.4°: milder than most of the country, but colder than 99% of Tennessee places with climate records; July afternoons average 84.2°.
Oneida has chilly winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. Only 4 of the 177 Tennessee towns we compare have a lower July high than Oneida. About 6 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Most working residents leave Oneida for work: only 19% work in town. The top destinations are Huntsville (19%), Knoxville (8%) and Helenwood (4%). Half commute less than 16 miles.
| Oneida | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 19% | 12% | 8% |
| Median household income | $49,000 | $61,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The biggest park or preserve is Oneida City Park, at 85 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Oneida City Park | — | 85 |
| 2. Field at Oneida City Park | — | 4 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Oneida. Close and well known come first.
4 mi National RiverBig South Fork National River and Recreation Area774K visitors a year
40 mi LakeLake Cumberland
24 mi WaterfallCumberland Falls
27 mi State parkFrozen Head State Park
11 mi MuseumBlue Heron
34 mi MuseumMuseum of AppalachiaBig South Fork National River and Recreation Area: Brian Stansberry, CC BY 3.0 · Lake Cumberland: Censusdata at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Cumberland Falls: ChrisKuehl, Public domain · Frozen Head State Park: Brian Stansberry (photographer), CC BY 3.0 · Blue Heron: Brian Stansberry, CC BY 3.0 · Museum of Appalachia: Brian Stansberry, CC BY 3.0
None within 15 miles of Oneida; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Oneida residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across Tennessee.
Town in Tennessee, United States
Oneida is a town in Scott County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 3,787 at the 2020 census. Oneida is known for its proximity to the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area. The town is named for Oneida, New York, the home of several railroad executives who helped develop the town in the late 19th century.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Oneida.
Winfield has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Winfield reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Oneida with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Oneida grades D− overall, better than 2% of U.S. towns and #165 of 175 in Tennessee. It grades D− for health, C for safety and C+ for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D−.
That is 4.6 years of the area's median household income ($44,711 across the county). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
2 notable people were born here, including Mike Duncan and Thomas W. Phillips.
