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Marianna collagePhoto: Brandonrush · CC BY-SA 4.0
Lee County Public Library · part of Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System

Marianna’s library is a branch of Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System, which lends less per resident than 99% of systems its size

Marianna’s library is the Lee County Public Library, a branch of Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System, which serves 33,054 people and lent 6,668 items last year.

77 West Main Street, Marianna 72360 · about 33 hours a week
C+Civic lifeAhead of 38% of U.S. towns · #63 of 114 in Arkansas. Nonprofits and volunteering.
Directions (870) 295-2688 What’s a card worth?
Borrowed a year
6,668
0.2 per resident
Visits a year
5,186
0.2 per resident · Below typical (2.6)
Cardholders
43%
14,339 cards
Open
33 hrs
a week at this branch
In brief

Marianna’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 ↓

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; Marianna’s library is a branch of Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System, so they cover the whole system (33,054 people), not just the Marianna branch.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Marianna’s civic life grade

On community nonprofits and volunteering, Marianna is ahead of 38% of U.S. towns, #63 of 114 in Arkansas. Marianna is graded on two of the three inputs. Marianna’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 Marianna’s overall grade.
–Library visitsServed by a county or regional system, so there is no town figureA−Community nonprofits6.2 per 1,000 residents · AR towns 3.4 · U.S. 3.7DVolunteering3.6% of adults 25–44 · AR towns 7.2% · U.S. 7.5%
All U.S. towns we grade (17,556)Ahead of 38%
FewerMore
Arkansas towns we grade (114)Ahead of 45%
U.S. towns with similar incomes, $15K–$25K (53)Ahead of 85%

Among U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($15K–$25K) it does better, ahead of 85%.

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. Marianna is small (3,253 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

21 community nonprofits are registered in Marianna

6.2 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: human services.

Community nonprofits, by kind

Arts & culture10.29 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.24
Youth, sports & recreation00.00 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.52
Civic groups, clubs & veterans51.46 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.74
Human services82.34 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.59
Education10.29 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.43
Health10.29 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.16
Environment & animals20.59 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.17
Other30.88 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.47

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. 1 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.

Volunteering

3.6%

3.6% of Marianna’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 Marianna’s residents live; 2022.

How it compares

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.

Visits per resident 0.2 visits · typical 2.6Bottom 10%
Borrowing per resident 0.2 print items · typical 3.7Bottom 10%
Kids’ borrowing 0 kids’ items · typical 1.7Bottom 10%
Cardholders 43% of residents · typical 39%Higher than 58%
Spending $10 per resident · typical $40Bottom 10%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

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 the library

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.

5,186
visits
0.2 per resident
6,668
loans, print + digital
0.2 per resident
14K
library cards
43% of people served
Every open hour1items borrowed
Every day5Wi-Fi sessions
5 staff (full-time equivalent)16 public computers
What people borrow

Books and media off the shelf

6,668 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.

6,668loans
Books & media (adults) 91%Kids’ books & media 9%
Kids & programs

What kids borrow

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

Schools in Marianna →
632
kids’ books & media borrowed
The building

Find it

Lee County Public Library, 77 West Main Street, Marianna.

Directions(870) 295-2688
33
hours open a week
1,000
square feet
With a card

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 Marianna? The Handbook →

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

What your card is worth

What a library card is worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Marianna 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
$10 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $327K.

Local taxes 92%State 5%Gifts & other 3%

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.

How to read these numbers

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. Lee County 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 Marianna

Does Marianna have a public library?

Yes: Lee County Public Library, 77 West Main Street, is a branch of Phillips Lee Monroe Regional Library System, which serves 33,054 people. The branch is open about 33 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 Marianna’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 Marianna’s civic life grade?

C+ Marianna is ahead of 38% of U.S. towns on civic life, #63 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 Marianna.

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.