Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
The best of Rocky Top’s subject grades is an A for cost of living; the weakest is a D− for safety. 37% of residents live below the poverty line in Rocky Top, above both Tennessee’s towns (14%) and U.S. towns (9.6%). On safety, just 5 of Tennessee’s 155 towns do worse. Residents are less healthy than 96% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. Rocky Top's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 95% of U.S. towns. Rocky Top has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Rocky Top beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Tennessee), ordered by how far Rocky Top is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 800 in 1880, a peak of 2,335 in 1980, 1,628 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1910 and 4 maps from 1936 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Rocky Top, 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 Rocky Top.
Rocky Top’s violent crime rate is 12.6 per 1,000 residents, above both the Tennessee town median (2.6) and the median of U.S. towns (1.6). Rocky Top’s property crime rate is 37.1 per 1,000 residents. Rocky Top reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 98% report less.
| Rocky Top | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 12.6 per 1,000 residents | 2.6 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 37.1 per 1,000 residents | 11.5 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its public schools are run by the Anderson County school district. One of its 2 schools is below, with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lake City ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 387 | C |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within TN on state tests and graduation
34% of Rocky Top adults have been diagnosed with depression. Among 177 Tennessee towns, just 9 have a higher share of adults who have obesity than Rocky Top. 43% of Rocky Top adults have high blood pressure.
| Rocky Top | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 19% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 29% | 23% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 20% | 17% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 16% | 14% |
| What stands out | Rocky Top | TN |
|---|---|---|
| More smokers | 24.2% | 17.3% |
| More adults with COPD | 11.9% | 8.6% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 18.5% | 14.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Rocky Top has chilly winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 87°, January nights drop to 28° and about 3 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 67% of U.S. communities. Since 1997, 3 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Rocky Top.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Most working residents leave Rocky Top for work: only 6% work in town. The median household income in Rocky Top is $33,000. The top destinations are Knoxville (20%), Clinton (16%) and Oak Ridge (13%).
| Rocky Top | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $33,000 | $61,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 5.6% | 12% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
32% of households own their home in Rocky Top.
| Rocky Top | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 32% | 66% | 73% |
| Median rent | $690 a month | $947 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Rocky Top. Close and well known come first.
Big draw23 mi Stadium & arenaNeyland Stadium
Big draw39 mi National ParkGreat Smoky Mountains National Park11.5M visitors a year
22 mi LookoutSunsphere
21 mi State parkFrozen Head State Park
23 mi Stadium & arenaThompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center
31 mi National Historical ParkCumberland Gap National Historical Park765K visitors a yearNeyland Stadium: Neomrbungle, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Great Smoky Mountains National Park: Scott Basford, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Sunsphere: Ɱ, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Frozen Head State Park: Brian Stansberry (photographer), CC BY 3.0 · Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center: TN 66, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Cumberland Gap National Historical Park: J654567, CC BY-SA 3.0
None within 15 miles of Rocky Top; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Rocky Top residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across Tennessee.
City in Anderson and Campbell Counties, Tennessee, US
Rocky Top (formerly Coal Creek and Lake City) is a city in Anderson and Campbell counties in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Tennessee, northwest of Knoxville. The population was 1,628 at the 2020 US Census. Most of the community is in Anderson County and is included in the Knoxville Metropolitan Statistical Area. On June 26, 2014, the city officially changed its name from Lake City to Rocky Top, after a last-ditch effort by the copyright owners of the song "Rocky Top" was denied by a federal court.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Not for the area. The typical home is worth about $149,000, 55% below the Tennessee 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.
