Is there anything as idealized as small-town life? For many people, the white picket fences, friendly neighbors, and main street lined with quaint mom-and-pop shops paint the perfect picture of the American Dream. But in reality, small towns aren’t immune to problems; in fact, some are just as threatening as bigger cities. To find out which in particular you should be aware of, we crunched the numbers to find out the most dangerous small town in America.
First, let’s clarify what we mean by “small town.” For starters, we focused our analysis on towns and small cities with populations ranging from 5,000 to 100,000 residents. We then narrowed the list down to the top 25 of the 100 towns with the highest violent crime rates (as recorded by the FBI and assembled by News+), which was the most important factor in our Danger Index.
From there, we used FBI data for property crime per capita, as well as the rate of pedestrian fatalities by congressional district (as compiled by Smart Growth America’s 2019 Most Dangerous Districts report). Finally, we factored in unemployment rate by congressional district, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, considering research has shown that a 1 percent change in the unemployment rate is typically found to increase property crime by up to 2 percent.
We then gave each metric a weighted value before running them through our exclusive algorithm to see how each small town scored on our 100-point scale Danger Index. Overall, the most dangerous small towns were located overwhelmingly in the Sun Belt and Midwest. And while we were analyzing towns with up to 100,000 people, the largest town on our list had 74,330 people; most were much smaller, with 30,000 or fewer residents. Read on to find out which small town is the most dangerous one in country, and to see if any in your state land on the list. And for more on how safe your state is overall, check out The Most Dangerous State in America, According to Data.
Read the original article on Best Life.
25 | Bastrop, Louisiana
Jarred Armfield/ShutterstockPopulation: 10,595
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 144.41
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 1,151.49
Pedestrian fatality rate per 100,000 residents: 2.23
Unemployment rate: 5.5 percent
Danger Index Score: 66.06
24 | East Point, Georgia
iStockPopulation: 35,791
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 117.91
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 1,032.82
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 3.29
Unemployment rate: 5.0 percent
Danger Index Score: 67.18
23 | Albany, Georgia
Jazmine Thomas/ShutterstockPopulation: 74,330
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 117.45
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 487.02
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 2.42
Unemployment rate: 9.4 percent
Danger Index Score: 68.47
And for the area of the U.S. where love isn't all around, check out The Most Hateful State in America, According to Data.
22 | Selma, California
iStockPopulation: 24,641
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 120.94
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 335.62
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 2.66
Unemployment rate: 9.6 percent
Danger Index Score: 68.84
21 | Lumberton, North Carolina
refrina/ShutterstockPopulation: 21,683
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 181.25
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 1,382.65
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 1.96
Unemployment rate: 4.3 percent
Danger Index Score: 70.69
20 | Gallup, New Mexico
Pixel Doc / ShutterstockPopulation: 23,528
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 172.56
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 700.44
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 3.28
Unemployment rate: 5.5 percent
Danger Index Score: 70.69
19 | Inkster, Michigan
JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP via Getty ImagesPopulation: 24,548
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 131.99
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 294.93
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 3.43
Unemployment rate: 8.5 percent
Danger Index Score: 71.97
18 | Cocoa, Florida
ESB Professional/ShutterstockPopulation: 17,825
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 207.01
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 678.82
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 2.94
Unemployment rate: 5.6 percent
Danger Index Score: 73.02
17 | Florida City, Florida
Brester Irina / ShutterstockPopulation: 12,297
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 207.01
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 678.82
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 2.94
Unemployment rate: 5.6 percent
Danger Index Score: 73.02
And for more on the place that's dangerously vain, check out The Most Selfish State in America, According to Data.
16 | Americus, Georgia
iStockPopulation: 15,838
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 110.32
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 759.04
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 2.42
Unemployment rate: 9.4 percent
Danger Index Score: 74.97
15 | Selma, Alabama
Rex Wholster / ShutterstockPopulation: 19,283
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 180.47
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 773.74
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 2.8
Unemployment rate: 6.8 percent
Danger Index Score: 76.66
14 | Barstow, California
Hank Shiffman/ShutterstockPopulation: 23,894
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 151.08
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 475.43
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 3.11
Unemployment rate: 8.5 percent
Danger Index Score: 76.89
13 | Lake City, Florida
Shutterstock/Timothy TattersallPopulation: 12,186
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 152.63
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 719.68
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 3.79
Unemployment rate: 6.2 percent
Danger Index Score: 77.94
And for more on the place that could use a few lessons on hospitality, check out The Rudest State in America, According to Data.
12 | College Park, Georgia
Billy F Blume Jr/ShutterstockPopulation: 14,724
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 189.49
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 954.22
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 3.29
Unemployment rate: 5.0 percent
Danger Index Score: 78.11
11 | Highland Park, Michigan
kenny_j/ShutterstockPopulation: 10,810
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 173.91
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 279.37
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 3.43
Unemployment rate: 8.5 percent
Danger Index Score: 79.25
10 | Ecorse, Michigan
Barbara Kalbfleisch/ShutterstockPopulation: 9,213
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 161.73
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 372.2
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 3.43
Unemployment rate: 8.5 percent
Danger Index Score: 79.67
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9 | Hartsville, South Carolina
Devin Holland/ShutterstockPopulation: 7,837
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 196.5
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 1,042.49
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 3.34
Unemployment rate: 5.1 percent
Danger Index Score: 83.15
8 | Opa Locka, Florida
Santi Visalli/Getty ImagesPopulation: 16,835
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 222.16
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 642.71
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 3.98
Unemployment rate: 5.0 percent
Danger Index Score: 83.33
7 | Dillon, South Carolina
Kristi Blokhin/ShutterstockPopulation: 6,648
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 191.04
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 1,090.55
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 3.34
Unemployment rate: 5.1 percent
Danger Index Score: 83.52
6 | Espanola, New Mexico
iStockPopulation: 10,030
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 267.20
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 555.33
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 3.28
Unemployment rate: 5.5 percent
Danger Index Score: 83.96
5 | Anniston, Alabama
JMcQ/ShutterstockPopulation: 22,205
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 331.01
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 771.00
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 1.57
Unemployment rate: 5.9 percent
Danger Index Score: 84.19
And for more on the place that isn't afraid to bend the rules, read up on The Most Corrupt State in America, According to Data.
4 | Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Rob Hainer/ShutterstockPopulation: 31,864
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 168.84
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 1,379.30
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 3.34
Unemployment rate: 5.1 percent
Danger Index Score: 87.73
3 | Lake City, South Carolina
iStockPopulation: 6,809
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 187.99
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 644.73
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 4.05
Unemployment rate: 6.7 percent
Danger Index Score: 88.48
2 | Monroe, Louisiana
Bonita R. Cheshier/ShutterstockPopulation: 49,677
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 300.54
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 935.24
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 2.23
Unemployment rate: 5.5 percent
Danger Index Score: 88.61
1 | Bessemer, Alabama
iStockPopulation: 26,592
Violent crime per 10,000 residents: 286.93
Property crime per 10,000 residents: 903.66
Pedestrian fatalities per 100,000 residents: 2.80
Unemployment rate: 6.8 percent
Danger Index Score: 100.00
And for more on the place that's all about more, more, more, check out The Greediest State in America, According to Data.
