Photo: David Shankbone · CC BY 3.0Cripple Creek has no public library of its own; the nearest is Franklin Ferguson Memorial Library in Cripple Creek, 0.4 miles away
Cripple Creek doesn’t have a public library of its own. The closest is Franklin Ferguson Memorial Library in Cripple Creek, 0.4 miles away. Many small-town libraries give cards to neighbors, sometimes for a yearly fee, so call ahead.
BCivic lifeAhead of 63% of U.S. towns. Nonprofits and volunteering.Libraries for Cripple Creek, in brief
Cripple Creek borrows from the libraries next door
Cripple Creek has no public library of its own, but two libraries are within 10 miles, the closest being Franklin Ferguson Memorial Library in Cripple Creek (0.4 miles). Many small-town libraries give cards to people from neighboring towns, sometimes for a yearly fee, so call ahead. Nearest libraries ↓
The nearby libraries are all fine-free
None of the four closest libraries charges late fines. Nearest libraries ↓
This summary is written from the numbers on this page. Distances are straight-line from the town center.
What’s behind Cripple Creek’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Cripple Creek is ahead of 63% of U.S. towns. Cripple Creek is graded on two of the three inputs. Cripple Creek’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups pulls it down.
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 →
16 community nonprofits are registered in Cripple Creek
16.8 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: arts & culture.
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 (5 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.
5.3%
5.3% of Cripple Creek’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 6.8% in the typical Colorado 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 Cripple Creek’s residents live; 2022.
The closest is 0.4 miles away
Closest first, measured from the center of Cripple Creek. Each one’s hours, and whether it charges late fines.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- The library’s own count. Libraries report their own visits, loans and programs. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.
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 Cripple Creek
Does Cripple Creek have a public library?
No. The closest is Franklin Ferguson Memorial Library in Cripple Creek, 0.4 miles from the town center. Many libraries give cards to people from neighboring towns, sometimes for a yearly fee, so call ahead.
What is Cripple Creek’s civic life grade?
B Cripple Creek is ahead of 63% 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 Cripple Creek.
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.