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Le Grand, IowaPhoto: Billwhittaker at English Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
Pioneer Heritage Library

Le Grand’s library logs 5.8 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries its size

Pioneer Heritage Library serves Le Grand’s 1,016 residents. Last year it lent 2,699 print books and media and logged 5,878 visits.

204 N Vine St., Le Grand 50142 · about 26 hours a week
–Civic lifeNot graded: fewer than 1,000 residents
Borrowed a year
2,699
2.7 per resident
Visits a year
5,878
5.8 per resident · Above typical (3.5)
Programs & events
107
about 2 a week · 1,199 attended
Cardholders
79%
801 cards
Open
26 hrs
a week
In brief

Le Grand’s library, in brief

A small-town library

Pioneer Heritage Library serves 1,016 residents with about one full-time staff, open about 26 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 ↓

Programs lean toward adults

54% of the 107 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 28 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.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Le Grand’s civic life grade

Le Grand isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.

–
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Le Grand’s overall grade.

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 →

How it compares

Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 4 of 7 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 5.8 visits · typical 3.5Higher than 73%
Borrowing per resident 2.7 print items · typical 3.9Lower than 66%
Kids’ borrowing 0.8 kids’ items · typical 1.4Lower than 66%
Program attendance 1.2 attendees · typical 0.7Higher than 68%
Programs offered 105.3 per 1,000 residents · typical 60Higher than 70%
Cardholders 79% of residents · typical 54%Higher than 69%
Spending $38 per resident · typical $54Lower than 70%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Pioneer Heritage Library serves 1,016 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 2 items go out

Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.

5,878
visits
5.8 per resident
2,699
loans, print + digital
2.7 per resident
107
programs & events
1,199 attended
801
library cards
79% of people served
Every open hour2items borrowed
Every week23people at a program
Every day2Wi-Fi sessions
1 staff (full-time equivalent)5 public computers11K books & media on the shelves
What people borrow

Books and media off the shelf

2,699 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.

2,699loans
Books & media (adults) 70%Kids’ books & media 30%
How hard the shelves work
0.2×

Each of the 11K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.2 time last year, on average.

Kids & programs

107 programs a year

Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.

Schools in Le Grand →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–512
Ages 6–1116
Teens15
Adults58
All ages6
Little ones
0.2

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

Kids’ books
5

children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in Le Grand last year.

1,199
people at programs
107
programs
The building

Find it

Pioneer Heritage Library, 204 N Vine St., Le Grand.

26
hours open a week
2,446
square feet
11K
books & media
With a card

No late fees.

New in Le Grand? The Handbook →

Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.

What your card is worth

For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.44 worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Le Grand 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
$38 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $39K.

Local taxes 81%State 3%Gifts & other 16%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $56K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $39K 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 801 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

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 Le Grand

Does Le Grand have a public library?

Yes. Pioneer Heritage Library, 204 N Vine St., serves Le Grand’s 1,016 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 26 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Pioneer Heritage Library fine-free?

Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).

How busy is Le Grand’s library?

It logged 5.8 visits and lent 2.7 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.

What is Le Grand’s civic life grade?

Le Grand 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 Le Grand.

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.