Atkinson’s library runs 102 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
Atkinson Public Library District serves Atkinson’s 1,387 residents. Last year it lent 3,935 print books and media and logged 2,692 visits.
Atkinson’s library, in brief
A small-town library
Atkinson Public Library District serves 1,387 residents with about one full-time staff, open about 27 hours a week. 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 ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 17% of the people Atkinson Public Library District serves have a library card, against a typical 54% for its size. How it compares ↓
A big collection for the borrowing it gets
Atkinson Public Library District holds 27,000 books and other items, but the average item went out less than once last year. 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; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Atkinson’s civic life grade
Atkinson 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 →
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 2 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Atkinson Public Library District serves 1,387 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 3 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
3,935 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 Atkinson’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 27K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.1 time last year, on average.
141 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
Atkinson Public Library District, 109 South State Street, Atkinson.
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 Atkinson cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $75K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $71K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $75K 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 239 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.
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 Atkinson
Does Atkinson have a public library?
Yes. Atkinson Public Library District, 109 South State Street, serves Atkinson’s 1,387 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 27 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Atkinson Public Library District fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Atkinson’s library?
It logged 1.9 visits and lent 2.8 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Atkinson’s civic life grade?
Atkinson 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 Atkinson.
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.