Photo: carlfbagge · CC BY 2.0Abingdon’s library logs 1 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size
John Mosser Public Library District serves 2,941 people in and around Abingdon. Last year it lent 6,976 books, movies and e-books and logged 3,000 visits.
The short version on Abingdon’s library
Programs are almost all for children
100% of the 64 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 30 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, John Mosser Public Library District sits below the middle on all seven per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on six. How it compares ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 16% of the people John Mosser Public Library District serves have a library card, against a typical 42% for its size. How it compares ↓
A big collection for the borrowing it gets
John Mosser Public Library District holds 26,000 books and other items, but the average item went out less than once last year. What people borrow ↓
Fewer visits than most libraries its size
John Mosser Public Library District records 1 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, below 88% of similar-size libraries. Borrowing holds up better, at 2.2 print items per resident. How it compares ↓
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 Abingdon’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Abingdon is ahead of 46% of U.S. towns, #357 of 754 in Illinois. Abingdon is graded on two of the three inputs. The share of younger adults in volunteering groups holds the grade up; Abingdon’s count of community nonprofits pulls it down.
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 →
10 community nonprofits are registered in Abingdon
2.9 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 (5 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
8.6%
8.6% of Abingdon’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.1% in the typical Illinois 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 Abingdon’s residents live; 2022.
Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
John Mosser Public Library District serves 2,941 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 6 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
6,976 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 26K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.2 time last year, on average.
533 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card.
About 1 kids’ program 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.
Find it
John Mosser Public Library District, 106 West Meek Street, Abingdon.
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 $1.15 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Abingdon cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $105K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $121K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $105K 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 461 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- The library’s own count. Libraries report their own visits, loans and programs. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.
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 Abingdon
Does Abingdon have a public library?
Yes. John Mosser Public Library District, 106 West Meek Street, serves 2,941 people in and around Abingdon (the survey’s count) and is open about 24 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is John Mosser Public Library 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 Abingdon’s library?
It logged 1.0 visits and lent 2.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Abingdon’s civic life grade?
B− Abingdon is ahead of 46% of U.S. towns on civic life, #357 of 754 in Illinois. 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 Abingdon.
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.