Photo: OsotedeMonte · CC BY 3.0Stanislaus County Law Library didn’t send its yearly numbers to the Public Libraries Survey
Stanislaus County Law Library serves 1 people in and around Modesto.
What stands out about Stanislaus County Law Library
Read from the library’s own yearly report. The page puts what stands out first.
What’s behind Modesto’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Modesto is ahead of 8% of U.S. towns, #326 of 448 in California. Among the 385 U.S. cities over 100,000 we grade, it ranks #315. Modesto is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Modesto’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($60K–$100K) 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 →
553 community nonprofits are registered in Modesto
2.5 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: human services.
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 (254 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 30 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
4.2%
4.2% of Modesto’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 5.9% in the typical California 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 Modesto’s residents live; 2022.
2 places to borrow in Modesto
Stanislaus County Law Library, 1101 13th St., Modesto.
No late fees. Good at every Stanislaus County Law Library branch.
New in Modesto? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Other Stanislaus County Law Library branches in Modesto
Libraries next door
Who has a library of their own, and how much each town borrows. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Modesto | Stanislaus County Law Library fine-free | — | 78 | D |
| Empire | Empire Library | — | 30 | — unincorporated |
| Salida | Salida Library | — | 39 | — unincorporated |
| West Modesto | None of its own | — | — | — unincorporated |
| Airport | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Bystrom | None of its own | — | — | — unincorporated |
| Riverdale Park | None of its own | — | — | — unincorporated |
| Parklawn | None of its own | — | — | — unincorporated |
Loans = print + digital items borrowed in the library’s fiscal year, per person it serves. — = no library of its own, a county or regional system (its numbers cover many towns), or no report. Civic life: — = not graded (unincorporated places, whose nonprofits can’t be placed by mailing address, or towns with fewer than two of the three inputs).
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Stanislaus County Law Library serves 1 people in and around Modesto, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Modesto.
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 Modesto
Does Modesto have a public library?
Yes. Stanislaus County Law Library, 1101 13th St., serves 1 people in and around Modesto (the survey’s count) and is open about 78 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Stanislaus County Law Library fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
What is Modesto’s civic life grade?
D Modesto is ahead of 8% of U.S. towns on civic life, #326 of 448 in California. 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 Modesto.
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.