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Pomeroy Public Library

Pomeroy’s library runs 157 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size

Pomeroy Public Library serves Pomeroy’s 858 residents. Last year it lent 7,200 print books and media and logged 4,500 visits.

114 S Ontario St., Pomeroy 50575 · about 19 hours a week
–Civic lifeNot graded: fewer than 1,000 residents
Borrowed a year
7,200
8.4 per resident
Visits a year
4,500
5.2 per resident · Above typical (3.5)
Programs & events
135
about 3 a week · 1,111 attended
Cardholders
41%
352 cards
Open
19 hrs
a week
In brief

What Pomeroy’s library is like

A small-town library

Pomeroy Public Library serves 858 residents with about one full-time staff. 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 ↓

Open only about 19 hours a week

Pomeroy Public Library keeps short hours: about 19 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓

Kids borrow more here than almost anywhere

Children’s books and media are 52% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 85% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 27 items per child in Pomeroy last year. 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 Pomeroy’s civic life grade

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

–
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Pomeroy’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 →

★ What stands out · Kids & programs

About 1 kids’ program a week

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

Schools in Pomeroy →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–50
Ages 6–1172
Teens0
Adults51
All ages12
Kids’ books
27

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

1,111
people at programs
135
programs
How it compares

Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 6 of 7 measures

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

Visits per resident 5.2 visits · typical 3.5Higher than 69%
Borrowing per resident 8.4 print items · typical 3.9Higher than 81%
Kids’ borrowing 4.4 kids’ items · typical 1.4Higher than 85%
Program attendance 1.3 attendees · typical 0.7Higher than 72%
Programs offered 157.3 per 1,000 residents · typical 60Higher than 83%
Cardholders 41% of residents · typical 54%Lower than 65%
Spending $63 per resident · typical $54Higher than 60%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Pomeroy Public Library serves 858 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 7 items go out

Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.

4,500
visits
5.2 per resident
7,200
loans, print + digital
8.4 per resident
135
programs & events
1,111 attended
352
library cards
41% of people served
Every open hour7items borrowed
Every week21people at a program
Every day7Wi-Fi sessions
1 staff (full-time equivalent)20 public computers17K books & media on the shelves
What people borrow

More than half the print loans are kids’ books

7,200 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.

7,200loans
Books & media (adults) 48%Kids’ books & media 52%
How hard the shelves work
0.4×

Each of the 17K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.4 time last year, on average.

The building

Find it

Pomeroy Public Library, 114 S Ontario St., Pomeroy.

19
hours open a week
2,000
square feet
17K
books & media
With a card

No late fees.

New in Pomeroy? 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 $2.25 worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Pomeroy cardholder borrows.

In a month I’d use…
Books$17 each
1
Kids’ books$12 each
1
E-books & audio$15 each
0
Movies & music$4 each
0
Programs & classes$10 a program
0
Computer & Wi-Fi$3 a session
1
Your card saves you about
$384
a year at retail prices · $32 a month

Who pays for it
$63 per resident a year

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

Local taxes 79%State 5%Gifts & other 16%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $123K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $54K 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 352 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 Pomeroy

Does Pomeroy have a public library?

Yes. Pomeroy Public Library, 114 S Ontario St., serves Pomeroy’s 858 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 19 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Pomeroy Public Library fine-free?

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

How busy is Pomeroy’s library?

It logged 5.2 visits and lent 8.4 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.

What is Pomeroy’s civic life grade?

Pomeroy 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 Pomeroy.

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.