Photo: Nils Huenerfuerst · CC BY 4.0Hillsboro Township’s library logs 1.4 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries its size
Hillsboro Area Public Library District serves 11,345 people in and around Hillsboro Township. Last year it lent 16K print books and media and logged 16K visits.
The short version on Hillsboro Township’s library
Hillsboro Area Public Library District is used less than most libraries its size
Hillsboro Area Public Library District records 1.4 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people. Borrowing is 1.4 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9. It also spends less than most: $24 per resident, against a typical $43. How it compares ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 9% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 40% for its size. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
Hillsboro Area Public Library District offered 107 programs last year, 9.4 per 1,000 residents against a typical 24. Kids & programs ↓
Most programs are for young children
67% of the 107 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 12 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; Hillsboro Area Public Library District serves 11,345 people in and around Hillsboro Township, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Hillsboro Township’s civic life grade
Hillsboro Township 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 →
Below most similar-size libraries on all 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Hillsboro Area Public Library District serves 11,345 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 6 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Hillsboro Area Public Library District system. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
16K 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 Hillsboro Township’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
About 1 kids’ program a week
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
Hillsboro Area Public Library District, 420 South Main Street, Hillsboro.
Good at every Hillsboro Area Public Library District branch.
New in Hillsboro Township? The Handbook →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 $1.10 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Hillsboro Township cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $276K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $304K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $276K 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 1,025 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hillsboro Township | Hillsboro Area Public Library District | — | 50 | — graded with its twin city |
| Hillsboro | Hillsboro Area Public Library District | — | 50 | B |
| East Fork Township | None of its own | — | — | C+ |
| Butler Grove Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Grisham Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| South Litchfield Township | None of its own | — | — | C |
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.
- System-wide. Hillsboro Area Public Library District serves 11,345 people in and around Hillsboro Township, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Hillsboro 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 Hillsboro Township
Does Hillsboro Township have a public library?
Yes. Hillsboro Area Public Library District, 420 South Main Street, serves 11,345 people in and around Hillsboro Township (the survey’s count) and is open about 50 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Hillsboro Area Public Library District fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Hillsboro Township’s library?
It logged 1.4 visits and lent 1.4 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Hillsboro Township’s civic life grade?
Hillsboro Township 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 Hillsboro 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.