Elma’s library runs 240 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
Elma Public Library serves Elma’s 1,087 residents. Last year it lent 3,065 print books and media and logged 6,750 visits.
The short version on Elma’s library
Four times the programs of a typical library its size
Elma Public Library ran 261 programs last year, about 5 a week. That’s 240 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60. People show up: 3,022 attended. Kids & programs ↓
A small-town library
Elma Public Library serves 1,087 residents with about one full-time staff, open about 41 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 ↓
Gifts and endowments pay a real share
29% of the library’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 69%. What your card is worth ↓
A place to get online
Elma Public Library logs about 14 Wi-Fi sessions a day and has 6 public computers. That’s 4.7 sessions per resident a year. A year at the library ↓
Programs lean toward adults
60% of the 261 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 58 were for children. Kids & programs ↓
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 Elma’s civic life grade
Elma 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 →
About 1 kids’ program a week
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 Elma last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 5 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Elma Public Library serves 1,087 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 1 item goes out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
3,065 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 8,102 books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.4 time last year, on average.
Find it
Elma Public Library, 319 Oak St., Elma.
Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.39 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Elma cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $66K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $92K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $66K 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 692 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 Elma
Does Elma have a public library?
Yes. Elma Public Library, 319 Oak St., serves Elma’s 1,087 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 41 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Elma Public Library fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Elma’s library?
It logged 6.2 visits and lent 2.8 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Elma’s civic life grade?
Elma 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 Elma.
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.