Photo: Marine 69-71 · CC BY-SA 4.0Somerton’s library is a branch of Yuma County Library District, which lends less per resident than 91% of systems its size
Somerton’s library is the Somerton Branch Library, a branch of Yuma County Library District, which serves 217,978 people and lent 432K items last year.
Somerton’s library, in brief
Kids’ books are most of what goes out
Children’s books and media make up 63% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is lower than at 85% of similar-size libraries, so the high share mostly reflects light borrowing by adults. What people borrow ↓
45% of borrowing happens on a screen
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 45% of loans. That’s partly because print borrowing is low: digital loans per resident are below typical too. What people borrow ↓
People visit, but borrow less than most
The Yuma County Library District system lends 1.1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.2 for libraries serving 100,000+ people, fewer than 91% of similar-size libraries, though visits are closer to typical. 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; Somerton’s library is a branch of Yuma County Library District, so they cover the whole system (217,978 people), not just the Somerton branch.
What’s behind Somerton’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Somerton has fewer per resident than most U.S. towns. Somerton is graded on two of the three inputs. Somerton’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the U.S. middle.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($56K–$93K) 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.
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 →
18 community nonprofits are registered in Somerton
1.2 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: education.
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 (7 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.
1.5%
1.5% of Somerton’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 6.0% in the typical Arizona 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 Somerton’s residents live; 2022.
45% of borrowing is digital
432K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
195,641 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 2 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 100,000+ people across the U.S.
Yuma County Library District serves 217,978 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 100,000+.
Every hour the doors are open, about 25 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Yuma County Library District system. The library’s own count.
About 15 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.
Find it
Somerton Branch Library, 240 Canal St., Somerton.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Yuma County Library District branch.
New in Somerton? 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 Somerton cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $36. Operating budget $9.7M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $6.7M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $9.7M 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 60,918 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Somerton Branch Library is one branch of Yuma County Library District, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 217,978 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 Somerton
Does Somerton have a public library?
Yes: Somerton Branch Library, 240 Canal St., is a branch of Yuma County Library District, which serves 217,978 people. The branch is open about 43 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Yuma County Library District 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 Somerton’s library?
It logged 2.0 visits and lent 2.0 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.1 visits for libraries serving 100,000+ people.
What is Somerton’s civic life grade?
D− Somerton has fewer community nonprofits per resident, and fewer younger adults in volunteering groups, than most U.S. towns. 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 Somerton.
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.