Photo: formulanone from Huntsville, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0Eldon’s library runs 79 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
Eldon Public Library serves Eldon’s 917 residents. Last year it lent 1,450 print books and media and logged 2,099 visits.
The short version on Eldon’s library
More library cards than residents
1,365 cards for 917 people. Cards held by people from outside the service area count too, so the total can pass the population. At the typical library serving under 2,500 people, it’s 54%. How it compares ↓
A small-town library
Eldon Public Library serves 917 residents with about one full-time staff, open about 30 hours a week. It’s compared only with libraries serving under 2,500 people, because per-person numbers always look big in a small town. A year at the library ↓
The library is a National Register landmark
Eldon Carnegie Public Library has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1996. Today’s library there has 3,543 square feet. The building ↓
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; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Eldon’s civic life grade
Eldon isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.
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 →
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 2 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Eldon Public Library serves 917 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
A year at Eldon Public Library
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
1,450 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 8,127 books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.2 time last year, on average.
72 programs a year
Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in Eldon last year.
A National Register landmark since 1996
Eldon Public Library, 608 W Elm, Eldon.
Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Eldon Carnegie Public Library
Eldon Carnegie Public Library was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 30, 1996. It is significant for its architecture and education at the local level. Its architecture is described as Classical Revival.
The Eldon Public Library is a public library and historic building located in Eldon, Iowa, United States. Established in 1906, the present building, completed in 1913 with a donation from Andrew Carnegie, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
More about the building →What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Eldon cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $39K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $33K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $39K 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 1,365 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Digital loans not reported. The library didn’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
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 Eldon
Does Eldon have a public library?
Yes. Eldon Public Library, 608 W Elm, serves Eldon’s 917 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 30 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Eldon Public Library fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Eldon’s library?
It logged 2.3 visits and lent 1.6 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Eldon’s civic life grade?
Eldon isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Eldon.
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. Building history: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places; photo via Wikimedia Commons. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.