East Alton’s library lends 1.9 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8 for libraries its size
East Alton Public Library District serves East Alton’s 9,411 residents. Last year it lent 18K print books and media and logged 21K visits.
East Alton’s library, in brief
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, East Alton Public Library District sits below the middle on all five per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on four. How it compares ↓
Illinois pays a big share
36% of the budget comes from the state, and 61% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 13% of the people East Alton Public Library District serves have a library card, against a typical 42% for its size. How it compares ↓
A big collection for the borrowing it gets
East Alton Public Library District holds 47,000 books and other items, but the average item went out less than once last year. What people borrow ↓
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 East Alton’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, East Alton is ahead of 38% of U.S. towns, #436 of 754 in Illinois. East Alton is graded on two of the three inputs. The share of younger adults in volunteering groups holds the grade up; East Alton’s count of community nonprofits pulls it down.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($37K–$61K) 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 →
14 community nonprofits are registered in East Alton
2.5 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 (12 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
8.5%
8.5% of East Alton’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 East Alton’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
East Alton Public Library District serves 9,411 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 8 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
18K 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 East Alton’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 47K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.4 time last year, on average.
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.
Find it
East Alton Public Library District, 250 Washington Avenue, East Alton.
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 East Alton cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $537K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $384K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $537K 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 1,241 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
East Alton ranks 3rd of 3 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wood River Township | Roxana Public Library District fine-free | 9.7 | 55 | C |
| Wood River | Wood River Public Library fine-free | 3.2 | 55 | C+ |
| East Alton | East Alton Public Library District fine-free | 1.9 | 46 | C+ |
| Alton | Hayner Public Library District | — | 46 | B+ |
| Alton Township | Hayner Public Library District | — | 46 | — graded with its twin city |
| Rosewood Heights | None of its own | — | — | — unincorporated |
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 East Alton
Does East Alton have a public library?
Yes. East Alton Public Library District, 250 Washington Avenue, serves East Alton’s 9,411 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 46 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is East Alton Public Library District fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is East Alton’s library?
It logged 2.2 visits and lent 1.9 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is East Alton’s civic life grade?
C+ East Alton is ahead of 38% of U.S. towns on civic life, #436 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 East Alton.
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.