Photo: Brandonrush · CC BY-SA 4.0Des Arc’s library is a branch of Prairie County Library, which lends more per resident than 67% of systems its size
Des Arc’s library is the Des Arc Public Library, a branch of Prairie County Library, which serves 7,935 people and lent 43K items last year.
Des Arc’s library, in brief
Few residents carry a card
Only 10% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 42% for its size. How it compares ↓
Most programs are for young children
68% of the 366 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 2.3 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Almost all the borrowing is off the shelf
Only 0% of loans are e-books, audiobooks or streaming, fewer per resident than at 99% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
This summary is written from the numbers on this page. Numbers are the library’s own report to the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024; Des Arc’s library is a branch of Prairie County Library, so they cover the whole system (7,935 people), not just the Des Arc branch.
What’s behind Des Arc’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Des Arc is ahead of 78% of U.S. towns. Des Arc is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups 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 →
7 community nonprofits are registered in Des Arc
4.4 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.
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 (2 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
9.6%
9.6% of Des Arc’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 Des Arc’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Prairie County Library serves 7,935 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 13 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Prairie County Library system. The library’s own count.
Not reported for 2024: books & media on the shelves. The survey fills a missing figure with its own estimate; we leave estimates out rather than show them as the library’s count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
43K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
The survey has no count of children’s loans for Des Arc’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
About 5 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
Find it
Des Arc Public Library, 408 Curran Street, Des Arc.
Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Prairie County Library branch.
New in Des Arc? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $3.93 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Des Arc cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $200K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $784K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $200K budget.
Late fines apply to some overdue items.
Retail prices are typical, rounded down: a new book $17, a kids’ book $12, an e-book or e-audiobook $15, a movie rental $4, a class or program $10, a computer or Wi-Fi session $3. The average cardholder’s month = the library’s yearly loans, attendance and Wi-Fi sessions ÷ its 783 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Not reported for 2024: books & media on the shelves. The survey filled the figure with its own estimate, so it is left out.
- System-wide. Des Arc Public Library is one branch of Prairie County Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 7,935 people it serves.
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 Des Arc
Does Des Arc have a public library?
Yes: Des Arc Public Library, 408 Curran Street, is a branch of Prairie County Library, which serves 7,935 people. The branch is open about 23 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Prairie County Library fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Des Arc’s library?
It logged 2.1 visits and lent 5.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Des Arc’s civic life grade?
A− Des Arc is ahead of 78% of U.S. towns on civic life. 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 Des Arc.
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.