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Gurdon depotPhoto: Robert Nunnally (flickr user: gurdonark) · CC BY 2.0
Cabe Public Library · part of Clark County Library

Gurdon’s library is a branch of Clark County Library, which lends less per resident than 89% of systems its size

Gurdon’s library is the Cabe Public Library, a branch of Clark County Library, which serves 22,320 people and lent 47K items last year.

204 East Walnut, Gurdon 71743 · about 25 hours a week
C+Civic lifeAhead of 40% of U.S. towns. Nonprofits and volunteering.
Directions (870) 353-2911 What’s a card worth?
Borrowed a year
47K
2.1 per resident
Visits a year
30K
1.3 per resident · Below typical (3.1)
Programs & events
190
about 4 a week · 5,024 attended
Cardholders
50%
11,127 cards
Open
25 hrs
a week at this branch
In brief

The short version on Gurdon’s library

The Clark County Library system is used less than most libraries its size

The Clark County Library system records 1.3 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people. Borrowing is 1.1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9. It also spends less than most: $20 per resident, against a typical $43. How it compares ↓

Programs are almost all for children

86% of the 190 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 2.8 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓

Few programs for a library this size

The Clark County Library system offered 190 programs last year, 8.5 per 1,000 residents against a typical 24. Kids & programs ↓

48% of borrowing happens on a screen

E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 48% of loans. That’s partly because print borrowing is low: digital loans per resident are below typical too. 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; Gurdon’s library is a branch of Clark County Library, so they cover the whole system (22,320 people), not just the Gurdon branch.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Gurdon’s civic life grade

On community nonprofits and volunteering, Gurdon is ahead of 40% of U.S. towns. Gurdon is graded on two of the three inputs. Gurdon’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups pulls it down.

C+
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Gurdon’s overall grade.
–Library visitsServed by a county or regional system, so there is no town figureACommunity nonprofits6.8 per 1,000 residents · AR towns 3.4 · U.S. 3.7DVolunteering3.5% of adults 25–44 · AR towns 7.2% · U.S. 7.5%
All U.S. towns we grade (17,556)Ahead of 40%
FewerMore
U.S. towns with similar incomes, $36K–$59K (4,148)Ahead of 42%

Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($36K–$59K) score higher, so income alone doesn’t account for it.

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.

How sure. Graded on two inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. Gurdon is small (1,817 residents), so a few dozen organizations or visits move its per-resident figures; the volunteering share is a 2022 estimate from Facebook users aged 25–44.

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 →

Places to belong

11 community nonprofits are registered in Gurdon

6.8 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.

Community nonprofits, by kind

Arts & culture00.00 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.24
Youth, sports & recreation31.85 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.52
Civic groups, clubs & veterans42.46 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.74
Human services21.23 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.59
Education10.62 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.43
Health10.62 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.16
Environment & animals00.00 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.17

Counted from the IRS list of tax-exempt organizations by mailing address (fractions where a ZIP code spans towns). Congregations are counted apart (6 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.

Volunteering

3.5%

3.5% of Gurdon’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 Gurdon’s residents live; 2022.

★ What stands out · What people borrow

48% of borrowing is digital

47K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.

47Kloans
Books & media (adults) 33%Kids’ books & media 20%E-books, audio & streaming 48%
From your couch

22,171 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.

How it compares

Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 8 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 1.3 visits · typical 3.1Lower than 82%
Borrowing per resident 1.1 print items · typical 3.9Lower than 89%
Digital borrowing 1 e-items · typical 1.1Lower than 53%
Kids’ borrowing 0.4 kids’ items · typical 1.8Lower than 88%
Program attendance 0.2 attendees · typical 0.4Lower than 77%
Programs offered 8.5 per 1,000 residents · typical 24Lower than 87%
Cardholders 50% of residents · typical 40%Higher than 67%
Spending $20 per resident · typical $43Lower than 83%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Clark County Library serves 22,320 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 15 items go out

Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Clark County Library system. The library’s own count.

30K
visits
1.3 per resident
47K
loans, print + digital
2.1 per resident
190
programs & events
5,024 attended
11K
library cards
50% of people served
Every open hour15items borrowed
Every week97people at a program
Every week573visits
4 staff (full-time equivalent)7 public computers
Kids & programs

About 3 kids’ programs a week

Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.

Schools in Gurdon →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–5146
Ages 6–1118
Teens2
Adults15
All ages9
Little ones
2.8

story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.

9,142
kids’ books & media borrowed
5,024
people at programs
190
programs
The building

Find it

Cabe Public Library, 204 East Walnut, Gurdon.

Directions(870) 353-2911
25
hours open a week
2,100
square feet
With a card

No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Clark County Library branch.

New in Gurdon? The Handbook →

Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.

What your card is worth

For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.68 worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Gurdon cardholder borrows.

In a month I’d use…
Books$17 each
1
Kids’ books$12 each
0
E-books & audio$15 each
0
Movies & music$4 each
0
Programs & classes$10 a program
0
Computer & Wi-Fi$3 a session
0
Your card saves you about
$204
a year at retail prices · $17 a month

Who pays for it
$20 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $449K.

Local taxes 86%State 14%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $753K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $449K 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 11,127 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.

  • System-wide. Cabe Public Library is one branch of Clark County Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 22,320 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 Gurdon

Does Gurdon have a public library?

Yes: Cabe Public Library, 204 East Walnut, is a branch of Clark County Library, which serves 22,320 people. The branch is open about 25 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Clark County 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 Gurdon’s library?

It logged 1.3 visits and lent 2.1 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.

What is Gurdon’s civic life grade?

C+ Gurdon is ahead of 40% 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 Gurdon.

Town Square →
Start a conversation

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.