Frankfort Township’s library lends 1.3 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8 for libraries its size
West Frankfort Public Library serves 7,275 people in and around Frankfort Township. Last year it lent 9,298 print books and media and logged 13K visits.
What’s behind Frankfort Township’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Frankfort Township is ahead of 8% of U.S. towns, #689 of 754 in Illinois. Frankfort Township is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups comes closest to the middle.
West Frankfort Public Library spends $23 per resident, against a typical $43 for libraries its size.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($43K–$72K) 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 →
12 community nonprofits are registered in Frankfort Township
1.9 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: human services.
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 (11 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
5.7%
5.7% of Frankfort 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 Frankfort Township’s residents live; 2022.
Below most similar-size libraries on all 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
West Frankfort Public Library serves 7,275 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 4 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
9,298 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 Frankfort Township’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 25K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.4 time last year, on average.
96 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
West Frankfort Public Library, 402 East Poplar Street, West Frankfort.
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 $1.11 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Frankfort Township cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $168K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $185K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $168K 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 496 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frankfort Township | West Frankfort Public Library | 1.3 | 44 | D |
| Benton Township | Benton Public Library District | — | 64 | B+ |
| Denning Township | None of its own | — | — | D |
| Cave Township | None of its own | — | — | C |
| Hanaford | 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 Frankfort Township
Does Frankfort Township have a public library?
Yes. West Frankfort Public Library, 402 East Poplar Street, serves 7,275 people in and around Frankfort Township (the survey’s count) and is open about 44 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is West Frankfort Public Library fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Frankfort Township’s library?
It logged 1.8 visits and lent 1.3 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Frankfort Township’s civic life grade?
D Frankfort Township is ahead of 8% of U.S. towns on civic life, #689 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 Frankfort 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.