36,744 people (2024 Census estimate, −1.5% since 2020)
1,794 square miles of land · 20 people per square mile
“Highest” and “lowest” are just order, not grades: a high rank for poverty or hazard losses means more of it. Each figure's source is in its section below.
33 active community water systems list Essex County in the area they serve, reporting 34,092 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| LAKE PLACID V surface water · local government · NY1500284 | 5,000 served |
| TICONDEROGA WD surface water · local government · NY1500293 | 3,700 served |
| MORIAH WD surface water · local government · NY1500287 | 3,100 served |
| SCHROON LAKE WD groundwater · local government · NY1500292 | 2,750 served |
| ADIRONDACK CORRECTIONAL FACILITY surface water · state · NY1510497 | 2,400 served |
| CHESTERFIELD WD surface water · local government · NY1500283 | 2,300 served |
| PORT HENRY WD surface water · local government · NY1500290 | 1,831 served |
| WILLSBORO WD surface water · local government · NY1500299 | 1,571 served |
Source: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), active community systems, . Look up any system's violations and test results with EPA's search using its ID.
About 65 people were held in Essex County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2026). In 2021 it was about 54.
Source: Vera Institute of Justice, Incarceration Trends (built from federal Bureau of Justice Statistics jail surveys). Counties without their own jail, or that share one, may show no figure.
10 school districts have their office in Essex County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $23.9 million — $21.7 million to run schools, about $29,805 per student, plus $594,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $13.4 million local (mostly property tax), $8.9 million state, $2.7 million federal. Long-term debt: $14.5 million.
Spent $23 million — $18.6 million to run schools, about $26,028 per student, plus $3.8 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $4.1 million local (mostly property tax), $15.1 million state, $2.7 million federal. Long-term debt: $5.8 million.
Spent $21.2 million — $20.3 million to run schools, about $35,547 per student, plus $266,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $17.3 million local (mostly property tax), $3.4 million state, $1.4 million federal. Long-term debt: $15.7 million.
Spent $15.7 million — $15.2 million to run schools, about $36,981 per student, plus $319,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $8 million local (mostly property tax), $8.2 million state, $1.1 million federal. Long-term debt: $1.1 million.
Spent $8 million — $7.5 million to run schools, about $22,326 per student, plus $410,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $1.6 million local (mostly property tax), $6 million state, $930,000 federal. Long-term debt: $1 million.
Spent $9.3 million — $8.7 million to run schools, about $33,487 per student, plus $173,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $5.9 million local (mostly property tax), $3.4 million state, $760,000 federal. Long-term debt: $4.7 million.
Spent $9.1 million — $8.1 million to run schools, about $33,942 per student, plus $570,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $6.9 million local (mostly property tax), $1.5 million state, $719,000 federal. Long-term debt: $6.6 million.
Spent $7.4 million — $6.4 million to run schools, about $38,047 per student, plus $835,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $6.4 million local (mostly property tax), $797,000 state, $165,000 federal.
And 2 more.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 Annual Survey of School System Finances. Districts are listed by the county of their main office; some serve neighboring counties too.
Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025 (University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute), which gathers federal data (CDC, Census, and others); measures cover different recent years. Blank lines aren't reported for small counties.
Overall risk: Relatively Low compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Essex County about $20.6 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Very High; social vulnerability: Relatively Moderate.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
260 bridges in Essex County: 125 in good condition, 111 fair, and 24 poor (9.2%). “Poor” means a main part — the deck, the beams, or the supports — is rated 4 or lower on the federal 0–9 scale. It doesn't mean unsafe to drive; unsafe bridges are closed.
| RIVER STREET EXT over OUTLET BROOK · built 1984 | 6,437 vehicles a day |
| RTE I87 over RTE 910K · built 1966 | 5,870 vehicles a day |
| RTE I87 over WEST MILL BROOK · built 1965 | 5,870 vehicles a day |
| RTE I87 over RTE 910K · built 1966 | 5,019 vehicles a day |
| RTE 9 over ROGERS BROOK · built 1926 | 2,227 vehicles a day |
| RTE 74 over SCHROON RIVER · built 1936 | 1,844 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $44.3 million of work in Essex County in fiscal 2025, about $1,184 per resident — to the county, cities, schools, hospitals, nonprofits and others.
Source: USAspending.gov, grants by place of performance, fiscal 2025 (Oct. 2024 to Sept. 2025). Search it by county to see each award.
From Grants.gov: posted grants listing county governments as eligible, soonest deadline first; research-only and overseas programs left out; list updated 2026-10-13, refreshed weekly. 62 are open in all. Cities, towns, school districts and nonprofits have their own lists there.
Registration deadlines, early voting and polling places for New York are on the federal site vote.gov, which links to the state's official election office.
The budget, property tax rates, audits, local officials and offices for Essex County come from the county's own records, which we haven't gathered — not gathered, never hidden. See what a full county site looks like, or ask to have Essex County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of New York: the state government and every county in New York.
Nearby counties: Addison County, VT (32 mi) · Warren County (38 mi) · Franklin County (43 mi) · Chittenden County, VT (43 mi) · Clinton County (45 mi) · Hamilton County (48 mi).