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Wenham in Essex County was the highest-ranked community in Massachusetts on the top 100 list of safest small towns, boasting a 0.0 crime rate per 1,000 residents, and a rate of 1.5 property crimes.
Lewisboro and Sleepy Hollow in New York, Luzerne Township in Pennsylvania, Weiser in Idaho, and the Thet Township in Michigan all tied for the safest small town after reporting zero violent or property crimes last year in a report released by the safety and home security site SafeWise.
Other Massachusetts communities to crack the top 100 include:
- Boxford in Essex County (22nd): 0.0 violent crimes per 1,000 residents; 1.6 property crimes per 1,000 residents;
- Clinton in Worcester County (29th): 0.3 violent crimes per 1,000 residents; 1,0 property crimes per 1,000 residents;
- Norfolk in Norfolk County (31st): 0.1 violent crimes per 1,000 residents; 1.9 property crimes per 1,000 residents;
- Highlands in Essex County (36th): 0.3 violent crimes per 1,000 residents; 1.3 property crimes per 1,000 residents;
- Dover in Norfolk County (47th): 0.2 violent crimes per 1,000 residents; 2.1 property crimes per 1,000 residents;
- Merrimac in Essex County (54th): 0.3 violent crimes per 1,000 residents; 2.1 property crimes per 1,000 residents;
- Medway in Norfolk County (62nd): 0.4 violent crimes per 1,000 residents; 2.0 property crimes per 1,000 residents;
- Hamilton in Essex County (67th): 0.1 violent crimes per 1,000 residents; 3.2 property crimes per 1,000 residents;
- Sterling in Worcester County (87th): 0.5 violent crimes per 1,000 residents; 2.0 property crimes per 1,000 residents;
- Stow in Middlesex County (93rd): 0.6 violent crimes per 1,000 residents; 1.7 property crimes per 1,000 residents;
- Southborough in Worcester County (96th): 0.3 violent crimes per 1,000 residents; 2.9 property crimes per 1,000 residents.
To rank the safest small towns in the US, SafeWise analyzed the latest available violent and property crime data from the FBI. Towns with populations greater than 15,000 people and fewer than 5,000 people were excluded from the study.
The report notes that Lewisboro was also the safest town in the US in 2020.
Safewise reported that there was a 38 percent rise in the violent crime rate among the safest small towns this year, but, there was a 17 percent decline in property crimes compared to the cities that made the list in 2020.
The complete list of America's 100 safest small towns can be found here.
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