Photo: Dual Freq · CC BY 2.5Atwood’s library logs 2.1 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries its size
Atwood-Hammond Public Library District serves 2,488 people in and around Atwood. Last year it lent 6,847 print books and media and logged 5,280 visits.
The short version on Atwood’s library
Few residents carry a card
Only 20% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 54% for its size. How it compares ↓
Most programs are for young children
73% of the 78 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 42 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
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; Atwood-Hammond Public Library District serves 2,488 people in and around Atwood, 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 Atwood’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Atwood is ahead of 82% of U.S. towns. Atwood is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups 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 →
5 community nonprofits are registered in Atwood
4.4 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 (1 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
10.7%
10.7% of Atwood’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 Atwood’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Atwood-Hammond Public Library District serves 2,488 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, for the whole Atwood-Hammond Public Library District system. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
6,847 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 Atwood’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
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
Atwood-Hammond Public Library District, 123 North Main Street, Atwood.
No late fees. Good at every Atwood-Hammond Public Library District branch.
New in Atwood? 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 Atwood cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $186K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $128K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $186K 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 491 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. Atwood-Hammond Public Library District serves 2,488 people in and around Atwood, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Atwood.
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 Atwood
Does Atwood have a public library?
Yes. Atwood-Hammond Public Library District, 123 North Main Street, serves 2,488 people in and around Atwood (the survey’s count) and is open about 42 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Atwood-Hammond Public Library District fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Atwood’s library?
It logged 2.1 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 Atwood’s civic life grade?
A− Atwood is ahead of 82% 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 Atwood.
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.