Bruneau Episcopal Church · Photo: Ian Poellet · CC BY-SA 4.0Bruneau’s library lends 0.5 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size
Bruneau Valley District serves 494 people in and around Bruneau. Last year it lent 623 books, movies and e-books and logged 932 visits.
The short version on Bruneau’s library
More library cards than residents
602 cards for 494 people. Cards held by people from outside the service area count too, so the total can pass the population. At the typical library serving under 2,500 people, it’s 54%. How it compares ↓
Most of the library’s borrowing is digital
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 60% of loans. That’s partly because print borrowing is low: digital loans per resident are below typical too. What people borrow ↓
Open only about 17 hours a week
The Bruneau branch keeps short hours: about 17 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Kids’ books are most of what goes out
Children’s books and media make up 81% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is lower than at 82% of similar-size libraries, so the high share mostly reflects light borrowing by adults. 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; Bruneau Valley District serves 494 people in and around Bruneau, and its numbers cover all of them; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Bruneau’s civic life grade
Bruneau isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.
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 →
60% of borrowing is digital
623 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
375 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Bruneau Valley District serves 494 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
A year at Bruneau Valley District
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Bruneau Valley District system. The library’s own count.
15 programs a year
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
Find it
Bruneau Valley District, 32073 Ruth St., Bruneau.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Good at every Bruneau Valley District branch.
New in Bruneau? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Bruneau cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $19K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $10K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $19K 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 602 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Bruneau Valley District serves 494 people in and around Bruneau, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Bruneau.
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 Bruneau
Does Bruneau have a public library?
Yes. Bruneau Valley District, 32073 Ruth St., serves 494 people in and around Bruneau (the survey’s count) and is open about 17 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Bruneau Valley District fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Bruneau’s library?
It logged 1.9 visits and lent 1.3 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Bruneau’s civic life grade?
Bruneau 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 Bruneau.
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.