Photo: RifeIdeas · CC BY-SA 3.0Hiawatha’s library lends 13 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size
Hiawatha Public Library serves Hiawatha’s 14,728 residents. Last year it lent 193K print books and media and logged 109K visits.
Hiawatha’s library, in brief
Hiawatha uses its library more than almost any town its size
Hiawatha Public Library logs 7.4 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people, and lends 13 print items per resident against a typical 3.9. On both counts it beats 92% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Kids borrow more here than almost anywhere
Children’s books and media are 48% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 94% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 45 items per child in Hiawatha last year. Kids & programs ↓
Programs draw a crowd
22,000 people came to the library’s 738 programs last year: 1.5 per resident, against a typical 0.4, more than at 96% of similar-size libraries. 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.
What’s behind Hiawatha’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Hiawatha is ahead of 88% of U.S. towns, #34 of 138 in Iowa. Hiawatha is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups 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 →
38 community nonprofits are registered in Hiawatha
5.3 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.
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 (3 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
10.5%
10.5% of Hiawatha’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 Hiawatha’s residents live; 2022.
About 9 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 Hiawatha last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Hiawatha Public Library serves 14,728 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 63 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
193K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 64K books and other items on the shelves went out about 3 times last year, on average.
Find it
Hiawatha Public Library, 150 W Willman St., Hiawatha.
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 $3.30 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Hiawatha cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $940K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $3.1M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $940K 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 6,797 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Who has a library of their own, and how much each town borrows. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hiawatha | Hiawatha Public Library fine-free | 13.1 | 59 | A |
| Cedar Rapids | Cedar Rapids Public Library fine-free | 3.1 | 64 | B+ |
| Robins | None of its own | — | — | B− |
Loans = print + digital items borrowed in the library’s fiscal year, per person it serves. — = no library of its own, a county or regional system (its numbers cover many towns), or no report. Civic life: — = not graded (unincorporated places, whose nonprofits can’t be placed by mailing address, or towns with fewer than two of the three inputs).
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 Hiawatha
Does Hiawatha have a public library?
Yes. Hiawatha Public Library, 150 W Willman St., serves Hiawatha’s 14,728 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 59 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Hiawatha Public Library fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Hiawatha’s library?
It logged 7.4 visits and lent 13.1 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Hiawatha’s civic life grade?
A Hiawatha is ahead of 88% of U.S. towns on civic life, #34 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 Hiawatha.
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.