Photo: Treymeister · Public domainMaquoketa’s library runs 14 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24 for libraries its size
Maquoketa Public Library serves Maquoketa’s 10,829 residents. Last year it lent 31K print books and media and logged 25K visits.
Maquoketa’s library, in brief
Gifts and endowments pay a real share
42% of the library’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 57%. What your card is worth ↓
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people, Maquoketa Public Library sits below the middle on all six per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on three. How it compares ↓
The library is a National Register landmark
Maquoketa Free Public Library has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1989. Today’s library there has 13,020 square feet. The building ↓
Most programs are for young children
66% of the 154 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 1 a week for ages 0–5. 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 Maquoketa’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Maquoketa is ahead of 90% of U.S. towns, #28 of 138 in Iowa. Maquoketa is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Maquoketa’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 →
54 community nonprofits are registered in Maquoketa
8.9 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 (8 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
8.7%
8.7% of Maquoketa’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 Maquoketa’s residents live; 2022.
A National Register landmark since 1989
Maquoketa Public Library, 126 S Second St., Maquoketa.
Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Maquoketa Free Public Library
Maquoketa Free Public Library was added to the National Register of Historic Places on Dec 27, 1989. It is significant for its architecture, communications and social history at the state level. Its architecture is described as Classical Revival. It was listed as part of Maquoketa MPS.
The Maquoketa Public Library is located in Maquoketa, Iowa, United States. The Maquoketa Literary Society was organized as early as 1851, and the Boardman Library Institute was founded in 1885. The community applied to the Carnegie Corporation of New York for a grant to build a free public library, and on March 14, 1902, they were awarded $12,500.
More about the building →Below most similar-size libraries on all 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Maquoketa Public Library serves 10,829 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 12 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
31K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 42K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.7 time last year, on average.
About 2 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 Maquoketa last year.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.45 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Maquoketa cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $352K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $511K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $352K 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 2,806 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 Maquoketa
Does Maquoketa have a public library?
Yes. Maquoketa Public Library, 126 S Second St., serves Maquoketa’s 10,829 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 51 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Maquoketa Public Library fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Maquoketa’s library?
It logged 2.3 visits and lent 2.9 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Maquoketa’s civic life grade?
A Maquoketa is ahead of 90% of U.S. towns on civic life, #28 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 Maquoketa.
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.