Bennington Township’s library runs 5.2 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
Toluca Public Library District serves 1,338 people in and around Bennington Township. Last year it lent 2,722 print books and media and logged 2,569 visits.
The short version on Bennington Township’s library
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving under 2,500 people, Toluca Public Library District sits below the middle on all five per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on five. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
Toluca Public Library District offered 7 programs last year, 5.2 per 1,000 residents against a typical 60. Kids & programs ↓
A small-town library
Toluca Public Library District serves 1,338 residents with about one full-time staff, open about 26 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 ↓
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 Bennington Township’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Bennington Township is ahead of 22% of U.S. towns. Bennington Township is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Bennington Township’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Toluca Public Library District spends $23 per resident, against a typical $54 for libraries its size.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($53K–$88K) score higher, so income alone doesn’t account for it.
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 →
6 community nonprofits are registered in Bennington Township
3.7 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. 1 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
5.0%
5.0% of Bennington Township’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 Bennington Township’s residents live; 2022.
Below most similar-size libraries on all 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Toluca Public Library District serves 1,338 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 2 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
2,722 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 Bennington Township’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 13K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.2 time last year, on average.
7 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
Toluca Public Library District, 102 North Main Street, Toluca.
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 $1.62 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Bennington Township cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $30K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $49K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $30K 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 379 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Who has a library of their own, and how much each town borrows. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evans Township | Bond Public Library | 3.6 | 24 | B− |
| Bennington Township | Toluca Public Library District | 2.0 | 26 | C− |
| Clayton Township | Benson Branch Library fine-free | — | 9 | — under 1,000 residents |
| Groveland Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Bell Plain Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Rutland | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
Loans = print + digital items borrowed in the library’s fiscal year, per person it serves. — = no library of its own, a county or regional system (its numbers cover many towns), or no report. Civic life: — = not graded (unincorporated places, whose nonprofits can’t be placed by mailing address, or towns with fewer than two of the three inputs).
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 Bennington Township
Does Bennington Township have a public library?
Yes. Toluca Public Library District, 102 North Main Street, serves 1,338 people in and around Bennington Township (the survey’s count) and is open about 26 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Toluca Public Library District fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Bennington Township’s library?
It logged 1.9 visits and lent 2.0 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Bennington Township’s civic life grade?
C− Bennington Township is ahead of 22% 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 Bennington Township.
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.