Poverty in the U.S. — The Poorest Towns in Every State

Presque Isle, Maine

Presque Isle, Maine

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Median Household Income: $37,036
Poverty Rate: 23.2%
Population: 9,246
Median Home Value: $108,700

This small town in northeastern Maine holds the distinction of being the poorest town in the whole state – and the only one that has a median household income of less than $40k. 12% of the town earns less than $10k a year, which is nearly double the state average of 6.4%.

This city got its name from the French presqu’île, which means “almost island.” It’s a geographical term that denotes a piece of land that is closer to being an island than most other peninsulas because it is joined to the mainland by an extremely narrow neck of land.

Written by Camille Moore

Camille has a master's degree from Saint Joseph University's Writing Studies program, and she currently works as the Writing Center Assistant Director at a small university in western Pennsylvania. Camille's writing has been published on several websites, and she enjoys writing articles and short stories in her spare time. You can follow Camille on Twitter @CamealAshley.