Photo: Brandonrush · CC BY-SA 3.0Paris’ library is a branch of Arkansas River Valley Regional Library, which lends less per resident than 81% of systems its size
Paris’s library is the Boyd T. & Mollie Gattis Logan County Library, a branch of Arkansas River Valley Regional Library, which serves 87,100 people and lent 192K items last year.
What Paris’s library is like
The Arkansas River Valley Regional Library system is used less than most libraries its size
The Arkansas River Valley Regional Library system records 1.1 visits per resident, against a typical 2.6 for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people. Borrowing is 1.4 print items per resident, against a typical 3.7. How it compares ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 15% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 39% for its size. How it compares ↓
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; Paris’s library is a branch of Arkansas River Valley Regional Library, so they cover the whole system (87,100 people), not just the Paris branch.
What’s behind Paris’ civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Paris is ahead of 93% of U.S. towns, #5 of 114 in Arkansas. Paris is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Paris’ count of community nonprofits 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 →
24 community nonprofits are registered in Paris
7.3 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 (12 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
10.2%
10.2% of Paris’ 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 Paris’ residents live; 2022.
Below most similar-size libraries on all 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Arkansas River Valley Regional Library serves 87,100 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 12 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Arkansas River Valley Regional Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
192K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
67,799 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
What kids borrow
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Find it
Boyd T. & Mollie Gattis Logan County Library, 100 East Academy, Paris.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Arkansas River Valley Regional Library branch.
New in Paris? 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 Paris cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $3.4M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $3M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $3.4M 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 12,759 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Boyd T. & Mollie Gattis Logan County Library is one branch of Arkansas River Valley Regional Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 87,100 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 Paris
Does Paris have a public library?
Yes: Boyd T. & Mollie Gattis Logan County Library, 100 East Academy, is a branch of Arkansas River Valley Regional Library, which serves 87,100 people. The branch is open about 42 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Arkansas River Valley Regional 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 Paris’ library?
It logged 1.1 visits and lent 2.2 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Paris’ civic life grade?
A Paris is ahead of 93% of U.S. towns on civic life, #5 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 Paris.
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.