Fort Lookout · Photo: Valis55 · CC BY-SA 4.0Public Library of Camden & Ouachita County didn’t send its yearly numbers to the Public Libraries Survey
Public Library of Camden & Ouachita County serves 24,098 people in and around Camden.
What’s behind Camden’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Camden is ahead of 75% of U.S. towns, #16 of 114 in Arkansas. Camden is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Camden’s count of community nonprofits ranks highest.
Civic life counts registered nonprofits, library visits and online volunteering groups, so it can miss civic life that runs through congregations, mutual aid or neighbors looking out for each other.
Library visits: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024. Nonprofits: IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File, October 2026. Volunteering: Social Capital Atlas (Opportunity Insights), from data by Meta Platforms, Inc.; Chetty et al., Nature 2022. How TownRatings grades civic life →
61 community nonprofits are registered in Camden
5.9 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: human services.
Community nonprofits, by kind
Counted from the IRS list of tax-exempt organizations by mailing address (fractions where a ZIP code spans towns). Congregations are counted apart (24 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 2 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
7.7%
7.7% of Camden’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 7.2% in the typical Arkansas town and 7.5% nationally.
Volunteering: Social Capital Atlas (Opportunity Insights), from data by Meta Platforms, Inc.; Chetty et al., Nature 2022. ZIP-code figures, weighted by where Camden’s residents live; 2022.
Find it
Public Library of Camden & Ouachita County, 405 Cash Rd, Camden.
Good at every Public Library of Camden & Ouachita County branch.
New in Camden? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Public Library of Camden & Ouachita County serves 24,098 people in and around Camden, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Camden.
Hours are the survey’s yearly average; libraries are compared with others serving about as many people. How TownRatings uses library figures →
Questions about the library and civic life in Camden
Does Camden have a public library?
Yes. Public Library of Camden & Ouachita County, 405 Cash Rd, serves 24,098 people in and around Camden (the survey’s count).
Is Public Library of Camden & Ouachita County fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
What is Camden’s civic life grade?
B+ Camden is ahead of 75% of U.S. towns on civic life, #16 of 114 in Arkansas. The grade combines library visits per resident, community nonprofits per 1,000 residents and the share of adults 25–44 in volunteering groups. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Camden.
Libraries: Institute of Museum and Library Services, Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024. Each library reports its own numbers. Distances are straight-line from the town center. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.