Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Henderson grades D overall, ranked 542nd of 640 in Texas, mostly because of safety and health. It reports more crime per resident than 87% of U.S. towns, including 40 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. Residents are less healthy than 84% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. One bright spot: natural-hazard risk is low. 27% of working residents work locally in Henderson, against 8.3% in Texas’ towns and 8% across U.S. towns. On history, just 39 of Texas’ 1,000 towns do better. The biggest park or preserve is Lake Forest Park, at 49 acres.
Where Henderson beats most towns.
Henderson Commercial Historic DistrictEach subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Texas), ordered by how far Henderson is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 918 in 1870, 13,271 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1933 and 2 maps from 1939 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Henderson, 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 Henderson.
Henderson has seen reported crime fall by a third or more, has commutes shorter than most of Texas and has more 90° days than most of the country, though not than most of Texas.
Reported crimes fell from 491 to 336 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
The property crime rate in Henderson is 21.9 per 1,000 residents. Henderson reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 87% report less. The violent crime rate in Henderson is 3 per 1,000 residents.
| Henderson | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 21.9 per 1,000 residents | 10.7 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 3 per 1,000 residents | 1.9 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its public schools are run by Henderson ISD. Two of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Henderson H S, with 1,018 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Henderson MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 700 | C+ |
| Henderson H SLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,018 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within TX on state tests and graduation
20% of adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance in Henderson. Henderson beats the Texas average on 0 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 14. 41% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Henderson.
| Henderson | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 18% | 8.1% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 39% | 36% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 24% | 19% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 30% | 25% |
| What stands out | Henderson | TX |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 8.2% | 5.7% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 17.1% | 12.5% |
| More smokers | 17% | 12.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The median property tax bill is $2,044, against $4,232 across Texas, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
The typical Henderson home is worth about $200,000, up 1.8% in a year, 33% below the Texas typical home. Henderson’s median rent is $1,007 a month.
| Henderson | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 65% | 69% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,007 a month | $1,208 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 77% of U.S. communities. Since 1985, 20 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Henderson.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Henderson weather station records that about 90 days a year reach 90°: more than most of the country, but fewer than 82% of Texas places with climate records. July afternoons average 93.2°: hotter than most of the country, but cooler than 84% of Texas places with climate records; January nights average 36.9°.
Henderson has mild winters and hot summers, with plenty of rain. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Henderson | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 93°F | 95°F | 85°F |
| January low | 37°F | 37°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 5,063 working residents takes 19.5 minutes, against 26.7 across Texas.
About one in 4 of Henderson’s working residents works in town. 15% of Henderson residents live below the poverty line. The top destinations are Longview (9%), Tyler (6%) and Houston (4%).
| Henderson | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 15% | 12% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $61,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lake Forest Park | — | 49 |
| 2. Fair Park | — | 32 |
| 3. Yates Park | — | 17 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Henderson; the nearest are
About 5 of every 100 Henderson residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Texas.
2 places in Henderson on the National Register of Historic Places.
27 notable people were born in Henderson.
City in Texas, United States
Henderson is a city and the county seat of Rusk County, Texas, United States. Its population was 13,271 at the 2020 census. Henderson is named for James Pinckney Henderson, the first governor of Texas. The city has functioned as a major crossroads in Northeast Texas over the last two centuries. Several major highways pass through the business district of the town, including U.S. Route 259, Texas State Highway 64, U.S. Route 79, Texas State Highway 43, and Texas State Highway 42. Annual events in the city of Henderson include the Heritage Syrup Festival in November, celebrating the East Texas tradition of sorghum syrup making, and the East Texas Sacred Harp Convention in August featuring sha…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Henderson grades D overall, better than 7% of U.S. towns and #542 of 640 in Texas. It grades C− for health, D for safety and C for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D.
That is 3 years of the area's median household income ($66,647 across the Longview, TX metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
27 notable people were born here, including Mark White and James Young.
