Photo: Chris Litherland · CC BY-SA 3.0El Dorado’s library lends 1.2 print items per resident, against a typical 3.7 for libraries its size
Barton Library serves 37,397 people in and around El Dorado. Last year it lent 44K print books and media and logged 46K visits.
El Dorado’s library, in brief
Barton Library is used less than most libraries its size
Barton Library records 1.2 visits per resident, against a typical 2.6 for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people. Borrowing is 1.2 print items per resident, against a typical 3.7. It also spends less than most: $16 per resident, against a typical $40. How it compares ↓
The branch is a National Register landmark
Barton Library has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 2024. Today’s library there has 10,803 square feet. The building ↓
Programs lean toward adults
52% of the 417 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 147 were for children. Kids & programs ↓
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; Barton Library serves 37,397 people in and around El Dorado, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind El Dorado’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, El Dorado is among the top 1% of U.S. towns, #1 of 114 in Arkansas. El Dorado 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 →
128 community nonprofits are registered in El Dorado
7.5 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
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 (50 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 1 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
19.8%
19.8% of El Dorado’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 El Dorado’s residents live; 2022.
A National Register landmark since 2024
Barton Library, 200 E. 5th St., El Dorado.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Barton Library branch.
New in El Dorado? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Barton Library
Barton Library was added to the National Register of Historic Places on Dec 10, 2024. It is significant for its architecture at the local level.
More about the building →Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Barton Library serves 37,397 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 7 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Barton Library system. The library’s own count.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
44K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 3 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.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.99 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average El Dorado cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $600K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.2M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $600K budget.
Fine-free. No late fees on books returned late.
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 16,276 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Digital loans not reported. The library didn’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
- System-wide. Barton Library serves 37,397 people in and around El Dorado, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just El Dorado.
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 El Dorado
Does El Dorado have a public library?
Yes. Barton Library, 200 E. 5th St., serves 37,397 people in and around El Dorado (the survey’s count) and is open about 42 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Barton Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks and research databases with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is El Dorado’s library?
It logged 1.2 visits and lent 1.2 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is El Dorado’s civic life grade?
A+ El Dorado is among the top 1% of U.S. towns on civic life, #1 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 El Dorado.
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. Building history: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.