Living in Cornwall, Pennsylvania: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 6.8% below the U.S. average in the Lebanon metro area.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3.1 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Cornwall itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
Schools in town1 public school. No public high school in town: the nearest is Cedar Crest Hs, about 4 miles away.
A hospital close byWellspan Good Samaritan Hospital in Lebanon, about 5 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityBaltimore is about 67 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Cornwall meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

What kind of town

A suburb, not a stand-alone small town

Cornwall runs into the built-up area around Lebanon (Census Bureau, 2020 urban areas). We include suburbs under 20,000 people because some still feel like small towns, but daily life here is closer to the suburbs than to the towns Frank and Dave's book describes. Weigh it against towns farther out.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $333,700U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 26%Lebanon County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $3,023 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $107,583U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 77%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $4,639 a yearPennsylvania: $3,311
Homes built before 1940: 18%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 18%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 93.2U.S. average = 100 (the Lebanon metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 26% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Lebanon metro area, not Cornwall alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate: 4,6982020: 4,599
Median age: 56.8 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 39%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 15%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 47%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 4%U.S.: 6%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work: Schools, health care and social services (27%); construction (17%); manufacturing (15%)
Unemployment rate: 0%U.S.: 5%
Average commute: 26 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 11%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 2%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Wellspan Good Samaritan Hospital, Lebanon, PA, about 5 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 5 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

1 public school in Cornwall, run by Cornwall-Lebanon SD. The nearest public high school is Cedar Crest Hs, about 4 miles away.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Pennsylvania's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet: 87%U.S.: 76%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low: 22°F
July average high: 84°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 13 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 120 a year
Rain and melted snow: 46.4 inches a year
Snow: 24 inches a year
Elevation: 808 feet

Weather station: Lebanon 2 W (6 miles away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Wellspan Good Samaritan HospitalEmergency room5

Lancaster, PACity of 58,00016

Baltimore, MDMetro of 2.9 million67

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Wellspan Good Samaritan Hospital, Lancaster, Baltimore.

Lebanon County is in a metro area of fewer than 250,000 people (USDA rural-urban code 3, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including Cornwall Iron Furnace. One is a National Historic Landmark, the country's highest honor for a historic place.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Appalachian National Scenic Trail16 miles
Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site34 miles
Carlisle Federal Indian Boarding School National Monument40 miles
Gettysburg National Military Park49 miles
Valley Forge National Historical Park51 miles

Read about Cornwall's history on Wikipedia.

Know Cornwall?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Pleasant Hill, PA3,100 people, 6 miles
Lebanon, PA26,000 people, 6 miles
Cleona, PA2,100 people, 6 miles
Manheim, PA5,000 people, 7 miles
Sand Hill, PA2,500 people, 7 miles
Annville, PA4,900 people, 7 miles

Smaller places

Quentin, PA (unincorporated)720 people, 2 miles
Mount Gretna Heights, PA (unincorporated)325 people, 3 miles
Mount Gretna, PA193 people, 3 miles
Timber Hills, PA (unincorporated)306 people, 4 miles
Lebanon South, PA (unincorporated)2,374 people, 5 miles
Penryn, PA (unincorporated)1,257 people, 5 miles
Hebron, PA (unincorporated)1,125 people, 5 miles
Avon, PA (unincorporated)1,397 people, 6 miles

Sources

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.