Douglas Township’s library runs 53 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Gilman-Danforth District Library serves 2,932 people in and around Douglas Township. Last year it lent 13K books, movies and e-books and logged 6,732 visits.
What stands out about Gilman-Danforth District Library
Read from the library’s own yearly report. The page puts what stands out first.
What’s behind Douglas Township’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Douglas Township is ahead of 90% of U.S. towns. Douglas Township is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Douglas Township’s count of community nonprofits 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 Douglas Township
9.3 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 (2 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
8.7%
8.7% of Douglas 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 Douglas Township’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 4 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Gilman-Danforth District Library serves 2,932 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 6 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Gilman-Danforth District Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
13K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
155 programs a year
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
Gilman-Danforth District Library, 715 North Maple Street, Gilman.
No late fees. Good at every Gilman-Danforth District Library branch.
New in Douglas Township? 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 Douglas Township cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $205K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $202K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $205K 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 804 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Onarga Township | Onarga Community Public Library District | 2.2 | 37 | B− |
| Douglas Township | Gilman-Danforth District Library fine-free | — | 42 | A |
| Danforth Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Iroquois Township | 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.
- System-wide. Gilman-Danforth District Library serves 2,932 people in and around Douglas Township, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Douglas Township.
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 Douglas Township
Does Douglas Township have a public library?
Yes. Gilman-Danforth District Library, 715 North Maple Street, serves 2,932 people in and around Douglas Township (the survey’s count) and is open about 42 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Gilman-Danforth District Library fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Douglas Township’s library?
It logged 2.3 visits and lent 4.3 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Douglas Township’s civic life grade?
A Douglas Township is ahead of 90% 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 Douglas 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.