Photo: David Morris · CC BY 2.0Emmetsburg’s library runs 130 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Emmetsburg Public Library serves Emmetsburg’s 5,030 residents. Last year it lent 25K print books and media and logged 38K visits.
Emmetsburg’s library, in brief
Four times the programs of a typical library its size
Emmetsburg Public Library ran 653 programs last year, about 13 a week. That’s 130 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34. People show up: 7,244 attended. Kids & programs ↓
People come to Emmetsburg Public Library a lot
Emmetsburg Public Library logs 7.6 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, more than 88% of similar-size libraries. Borrowing is above typical too, at 5 print items per resident. How it compares ↓
A big collection for the borrowing it gets
Emmetsburg Public Library holds 48,000 books and other items, but the average item went out about once every two years last year. What people borrow ↓
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.
What’s behind Emmetsburg’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Emmetsburg is ahead of 87% of U.S. towns, #37 of 138 in Iowa. Emmetsburg is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Emmetsburg’s count of community nonprofits ranks highest.
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 →
35 community nonprofits are registered in Emmetsburg
9.6 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
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 (7 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
8.2%
8.2% of Emmetsburg’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.6% in the typical Iowa 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 Emmetsburg’s residents live; 2022.
About 6 kids’ programs 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 Emmetsburg last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 6 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Emmetsburg Public Library serves 5,030 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 9 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
25K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 48K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.5 time last year, on average.
Find it
Emmetsburg Public Library, 707 N Superior, Emmetsburg.
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 $1.38 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Emmetsburg cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $337K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $467K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $337K 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 2,481 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 Emmetsburg
Does Emmetsburg have a public library?
Yes. Emmetsburg Public Library, 707 N Superior, serves Emmetsburg’s 5,030 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 54 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Emmetsburg Public Library fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Emmetsburg’s library?
It logged 7.6 visits and lent 5.0 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Emmetsburg’s civic life grade?
A Emmetsburg is ahead of 87% of U.S. towns on civic life, #37 of 138 in Iowa. 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 Emmetsburg.
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.