Photo: Farragutful · CC BY-SA 4.0Coal Valley’s library runs 279 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Robert R. Jones Public Library District serves 4,855 people in and around Coal Valley. Last year it lent 26K print books and media and logged 45K visits.
Coal Valley’s library, in brief
Eight times the programs of a typical library its size
Robert R. Jones Public Library District ran 1,354 programs last year, about 26 a week. That’s 279 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34. People show up: 17,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
People come to Robert R. Jones Public Library District a lot
Robert R. Jones Public Library District logs 9.3 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, more than 93% of similar-size libraries. Borrowing is above typical too, at 5.3 print items per resident. How it compares ↓
Most programs are for young children
68% of the 1,354 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 4.6 a week 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.
What’s behind Coal Valley’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Coal Valley is ahead of 89% of U.S. towns, #56 of 754 in Illinois. Coal Valley 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 →
18 community nonprofits are registered in Coal Valley
4.3 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 (5 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 2 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
15.6%
15.6% of Coal Valley’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 Coal Valley’s residents live; 2022.
About 18 kids’ programs a week
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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 5 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Robert R. Jones Public Library District serves 4,855 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 10 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
26K 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 Coal Valley’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 42K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.6 time last year, on average.
Find it
Robert R. Jones Public Library District, 900 First Street, Coal Valley.
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 $2.22 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Coal Valley cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $292K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $648K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $292K 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 1,072 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coal Valley | Robert R. Jones Public Library District fine-free | 5.3 | 52 | A |
| Moline | Moline Public Library fine-free | 5.2 | 61 | B+ |
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 Coal Valley
Does Coal Valley have a public library?
Yes. Robert R. Jones Public Library District, 900 First Street, serves 4,855 people in and around Coal Valley (the survey’s count) and is open about 52 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Robert R. Jones Public Library District fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Coal Valley’s library?
It logged 9.3 visits and lent 5.3 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Coal Valley’s civic life grade?
A Coal Valley is ahead of 89% of U.S. towns on civic life, #56 of 754 in Illinois. 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 Coal Valley.
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.