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Mccollum Public Library · part of Jefferson County Library System

Wrens’ library is a branch of Jefferson County Library System, which lends less per resident than 91% of systems its size

Wrens’s library is the Mccollum Public Library, a branch of Jefferson County Library System, which serves 15,133 people and lent 19K items last year.

405 N. Main Street, Wrens 30833 · about 38 hours a week
C+Civic lifeAhead of 39% of U.S. towns. Nonprofits and volunteering.
Directions (706) 547-7567 What’s a card worth?
Borrowed a year
19K
1.3 per resident
Visits a year
12K
0.8 per resident · Below typical (3.1)
Programs & events
63
about 1 a week · 681 attended
Cardholders
27%
4,014 cards
Open
38 hrs
a week at this branch
In brief

What Wrens’s library is like

The Jefferson County Library System is used less than most libraries its size

The Jefferson County Library System records 0.8 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people. Borrowing is 1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9. It also spends less than most: $23 per resident, against a typical $43. How it compares ↓

Programs are almost all for children

90% of the 63 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 30 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓

Few programs for a library this size

The Jefferson County Library System offered 63 programs last year, 4.2 per 1,000 residents against a typical 24. Kids & programs ↓

Georgia pays a big share

29% of the budget comes from the state, and 68% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. 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; Wrens’s library is a branch of Jefferson County Library System, so they cover the whole system (15,133 people), not just the Wrens branch.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Wrens’ civic life grade

On community nonprofits and volunteering, Wrens is ahead of 39% of U.S. towns. Wrens is graded on two of the three inputs. Wrens’ 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 Wrens’ overall grade.
–Library visitsServed by a county or regional system, so there is no town figureA−Community nonprofits6.4 per 1,000 residents · GA towns 2.8 · U.S. 3.7DVolunteering3.6% of adults 25–44 · GA towns 4.9% · U.S. 7.5%
All U.S. towns we grade (17,556)Ahead of 39%
FewerMore
U.S. towns with similar incomes, $28K–$47K (1,455)Ahead of 54%

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. Wrens is small (2,100 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

14 community nonprofits are registered in Wrens

6.4 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.

Community nonprofits, by kind

Arts & culture10.46 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.24
Youth, sports & recreation31.37 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.52
Civic groups, clubs & veterans31.37 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.74
Human services31.37 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.59
Education00.00 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.43
Health10.46 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.16
Environment & animals10.46 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.17
Other20.91 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 (10 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.

Volunteering

3.6%

3.6% of Wrens’ Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 4.9% in the typical Georgia 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 Wrens’ residents live; 2022.

How it compares

Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 0.8 visits · typical 3.1Bottom 10%
Borrowing per resident 1 print items · typical 3.9Bottom 10%
Digital borrowing 0.3 e-items · typical 1.1Lower than 85%
Kids’ borrowing 0.5 kids’ items · typical 1.8Lower than 86%
Program attendance 0 attendees · typical 0.4Bottom 10%
Programs offered 4.2 per 1,000 residents · typical 24Bottom 10%
Cardholders 27% of residents · typical 40%Lower than 75%
Spending $23 per resident · typical $43Lower than 80%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Jefferson County Library System serves 15,133 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 3 items go out

Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Jefferson County Library System system. The library’s own count.

12K
visits
0.8 per resident
19K
loans, print + digital
1.3 per resident
63
programs & events
681 attended
4,014
library cards
27% of people served
Every open hour3items borrowed
Every week13people at a program
Every day8Wi-Fi sessions
5 staff (full-time equivalent)45 public computers
What people borrow

Almost half the print loans are kids’ books

19K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.

19Kloans
Books & media (adults) 38%Kids’ books & media 38%E-books, audio & streaming 24%
From your couch

4,535 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.

Kids & programs

About 1 kids’ program a week

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

Schools in Wrens →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–530
Ages 6–1127
Teens0
Adults4
All ages2
Little ones
0.6

story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.

7,172
kids’ books & media borrowed
681
people at programs
63
programs
The building

Find it

Mccollum Public Library, 405 N. Main Street, Wrens.

Directions(706) 547-7567
38
hours open a week
5,220
square feet
With a card

E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Jefferson County Library System branch.

New in Wrens? 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 Wrens 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
$23 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $341K.

Local taxes 68%State 29%Gifts & other 3%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $294K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $341K budget.

Late fines apply to some overdue items.

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 4,014 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.

  • System-wide. Mccollum Public Library is one branch of Jefferson County Library System, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 15,133 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 Wrens

Does Wrens have a public library?

Yes: Mccollum Public Library, 405 N. Main Street, is a branch of Jefferson County Library System, which serves 15,133 people. The branch is open about 38 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Jefferson County Library System fine-free? Does it lend e-books?

It charges late fines on some overdue items, and it lends e-books and audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).

How busy is Wrens’ library?

It logged 0.8 visits and lent 1.3 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.

What is Wrens’ civic life grade?

C+ Wrens is ahead of 39% 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 Wrens.

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.