Photo: Arthur Public Library · CC BY 2.5Arthur’s library lends 7.6 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8 for libraries its size
Arthur Public Library District serves 5,562 people in and around Arthur. Last year it lent 42K print books and media and logged 14K visits.
The short version on Arthur’s library
Programs are almost all for children
82% of the 65 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 21 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 16% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 42% for its size. 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; Arthur Public Library District serves 5,562 people in and around Arthur, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Arthur’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Arthur is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns. Arthur is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Arthur’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 →
12 community nonprofits are registered in Arthur
5.7 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
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 (4 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
8.9%
8.9% of Arthur’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 Arthur’s residents live; 2022.
Books and media off the shelf
42K 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 Arthur’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
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.
Arthur Public Library District serves 5,562 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 14 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Arthur Public Library District system. The library’s own count.
About 1 kids’ program a week
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
Arthur Public Library District, 225 South Walnut Street, Arthur.
No late fees. Good at every Arthur Public Library District branch.
New in Arthur? The Handbook →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 $2.93 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Arthur cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $253K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $741K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $253K 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 884 cardholders ÷ 12.
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.
- System-wide. Arthur Public Library District serves 5,562 people in and around Arthur, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Arthur.
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 Arthur
Does Arthur have a public library?
Yes. Arthur Public Library District, 225 South Walnut Street, serves 5,562 people in and around Arthur (the survey’s count) and is open about 57 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Arthur Public Library District fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Arthur’s library?
It logged 2.4 visits and lent 7.6 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Arthur’s civic life grade?
A− Arthur is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns on civic life. 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 Arthur.
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.