Argenta’s library lends 6.3 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8 for libraries its size
Argenta-Oreana Public Library District serves 3,861 people in and around Argenta. Last year it lent 24K print books and media and logged 11K visits.
Argenta’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 55%. What your card is worth ↓
Argenta-Oreana Public Library District serves more than Argenta
The library’s service area covers 3,861 people in and around Argenta, so its per-resident numbers are measured against that wider population. How it compares ↓
Argenta invests in its library
Argenta-Oreana Public Library District spends $91 per resident a year, about twice the typical $43 for a library its size. What your card is worth ↓
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 Argenta’s civic life grade
Argenta 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 →
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.27 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Argenta cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $352K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $448K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $352K budget.
Late fines apply to some overdue items.
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 742 cardholders ÷ 12.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 2 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Argenta-Oreana Public Library District serves 3,861 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.
Books and media off the shelf
24K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
The survey has no count of children’s loans for Argenta’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 25K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1 time last year, on average.
81 programs a year
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
Argenta Branch Library, 100 East Water Street, Argenta.
Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Digital loans not reported. Illinois libraries often don’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 Argenta
Does Argenta have a public library?
Yes. Argenta-Oreana Public Library District, 100 East Water Street, serves 3,861 people in and around Argenta (the survey’s count) and is open about 39 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Argenta-Oreana Public Library District fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Argenta’s library?
It logged 2.8 visits and lent 6.3 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Argenta’s civic life grade?
Argenta 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 Argenta.
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.