Photo: Dual Freq · CC BY 2.5De Land’s library runs 206 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
Goose Creek District Library serves 788 people in and around De Land. Last year it lent 1,652 print books and media and logged 3,354 visits.
De Land’s library, in brief
A small-town library
Goose Creek District Library serves 788 residents with about 2 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 ↓
Goose Creek District Library serves more than De Land
The library’s service area covers 788 people in and around De Land, so its per-resident numbers are measured against that wider population. How it compares ↓
De Land invests in its library
Goose Creek District Library spends $129 per resident a year, about twice the typical $54 for a library its size. Almost all of it (98%) comes from local taxes. What your card is worth ↓
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 De Land’s civic life grade
De Land 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 →
About 2 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 4 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Goose Creek District Library serves 788 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 1 item goes out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
1,652 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 De Land’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 6,084 books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.3 time last year, on average.
Find it
Goose Creek Township Carnegie Library, 220 North Highway Avenue, Deland.
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 De Land cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $102K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $42K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $102K 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 251 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 De Land
Does De Land have a public library?
Yes. Goose Creek District Library, 220 North Highway Avenue, serves 788 people in and around De Land (the survey’s count) and is open about 27 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Goose Creek District Library fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is De Land’s library?
It logged 4.3 visits and lent 2.1 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is De Land’s civic life grade?
De Land 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 De Land.
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.