Elaine’s library is a branch of Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System, which lends less per resident than 99% of systems its size
Elaine’s library is the Elaine Public Library, a branch of Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System, which serves 33,054 people and lent 6,668 items last year.
Elaine’s library, in brief
The Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System is used less than most libraries its size
The Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System records 0.2 visits per resident, against a typical 2.6 for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people. Borrowing is 0.2 print items per resident, against a typical 3.7. It also spends less than most: $10 per resident, against a typical $40. How it compares ↓
Open only about 12 hours a week
The Elaine branch keeps short hours: about 12 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Runs on less money than most
The Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System spends $10 per resident, less than 96% of similar-size libraries (typical: $40). What your card is worth ↓
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; Elaine’s library is a branch of Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System, so they cover the whole system (33,054 people), not just the Elaine branch.
What’s behind Elaine’s civic life grade
Elaine isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.
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 →
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 5 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System serves 33,054 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
A year at Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System system. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
6,668 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
What kids borrow
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Find it
Elaine Public Library, 126 Main Street, Elaine.
No late fees. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Good at every Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System branch.
New in Elaine? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Elaine cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $327K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $116K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $327K 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 14,339 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. Elaine Public Library is one branch of Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 33,054 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 Elaine
Does Elaine have a public library?
Yes: Elaine Public Library, 126 Main Street, is a branch of Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System, which serves 33,054 people. The branch is open about 12 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Elaine’s library?
It logged 0.2 visits and lent 0.2 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Elaine’s civic life grade?
Elaine isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Elaine.
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.