Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Whiteville earns a D, 151st of 175 graded towns in Tennessee, mostly because of incomes and health. The median household income is $42K, and 28% of residents live below the poverty line. Residents are less healthy than 96% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. In its favor, crime is low: it reports less per resident than 84% of U.S. towns. 28% of residents live below the poverty line in Whiteville, against 14% in Tennessee’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 86% of U.S. towns. Whiteville's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 97% of U.S. towns.
Where Whiteville beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Allen-White School (Additional Documentation)| Widest gap | Whiteville | TN |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 32.9% | 14.6% |
4,638 counted in 2010 and 2,606 in 2020; an estimated 4,482 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Tennessee), ordered by how far Whiteville is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 186 in 1860, a low of 80 in 1870, 2,606 in 2020. The archive holds 2 old photos and papers going back to 2010 and 3 maps from 1959 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Whiteville, 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 Whiteville.
Whiteville draws workers from Bolivar and beyond, fares better on crime within Tennessee than nationally and is healthier than towns with similar incomes.
Against the 3,075 U.S. towns with household incomes like Whiteville’s, it is less healthy than 80%, so its D− isn’t only a matter of income.
27% of Whiteville adults smoke cigarettes. Of the 176 Tennessee towns we compare, none has a higher share of adults who sleep under 7 hours than Whiteville. 35% of Whiteville adults get no exercise outside work.
| Whiteville | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 19% | 14% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 49% | 38% | 36% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 16% | 14% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 12% | 8.1% |
| What stands out | Whiteville | TN |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 4.2% | 8.2% |
| Fewer adults with arthritis | 23.9% | 30.6% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 32.9% | 14.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Hardeman County Schools. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whiteville ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 217 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within TN on state tests and graduation
971 jobs are based in Whiteville, 1.6 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
Most working residents leave Whiteville for work: only 6% work in town. Jobs based in Whiteville fell to 971 in 2023, 107 fewer than in 2013. The top destinations are Jackson (12%), Bolivar (11%) and Memphis (10%).
| Whiteville | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $42,000 | $61,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 6.4% | 12% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The median property tax bill is $665, against $1,442 across Tennessee, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
43% of households own their home in Whiteville. Typical home values rose 9.2% in the year to September 2026. Whiteville’s median rent is $910 a month.
| Whiteville | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 43% | 66% | 73% |
| Median rent | $910 a month | $950 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
At 7.2 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 97% of Tennessee’s graded towns. Violent crime is rare: 7 reported in 2025, 1.5 per 1,000 residents.
The property crime rate in Whiteville is 2 per 1,000 residents.
| Whiteville | Tennessee towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2 per 1,000 residents | 11.5 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.5 per 1,000 residents | 2.7 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Whiteville has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 90°, January nights drop to 30° and about 2 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 63% of U.S. communities. Since 2010, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Whiteville.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Just 0 of its 1,683 acres are conserved, so there is little public open land in Whiteville itself; its outdoors grade is D.
0.1 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Whiteville City Park | 0.1 mi | 8 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Whiteville; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Whiteville residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across Tennessee.
Where Whiteville’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
3 notable people were born in Whiteville.
Town in Tennessee, United States
Whiteville is a town in Hardeman County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 2,606 at the 2020 census and 4,638 at the 2010 census, Whiteville is the location of two privately owned prisons, Whiteville Correctional Facility and Hardeman County Correctional Center. Whiteville is also home to Allen-White School, a former Rosenwald school that was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. Whiteville was founded in the early 1800s as a trading post, and was formally incorporated in 1901.The town and its economy grew primarily through cotton production.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Whiteville grades D overall, better than 7% of U.S. towns and #151 of 175 in Tennessee. It grades D− for health, A− for safety and D for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D−.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
3 notable people were born here, including Phineas Newborn Jr. and Calvin Newborn.
