Photo: TheCatalyst31 · CC BY-SA 4.0Hinckley’s library runs 78 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Hinckley Public Library District serves 2,717 people in and around Hinckley. Last year it lent 18K print books and media and logged 16K visits.
What stands out about Hinckley’s library
Read from the library’s own yearly report. The page puts what stands out first.
What’s behind Hinckley’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Hinckley is ahead of 95% of U.S. towns. Hinckley is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups 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 →
12 community nonprofits are registered in Hinckley
5.2 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 (2 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
26.5%
26.5% of Hinckley’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 Hinckley’s residents live; 2022.
Every hour the doors are open, about 7 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 5 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Hinckley Public Library District serves 2,717 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
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 Hinckley’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 21K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.9 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
Hinckley Public Library District, 100 North Maple Street, Hinckley.
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 $1.45 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Hinckley cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $234K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $338K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $234K 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 648 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 Hinckley
Does Hinckley have a public library?
Yes. Hinckley Public Library District, 100 North Maple Street, serves 2,717 people in and around Hinckley (the survey’s count) and is open about 47 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Hinckley Public Library District fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Hinckley’s library?
It logged 6.0 visits and lent 6.7 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Hinckley’s civic life grade?
A+ Hinckley is ahead of 95% 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 Hinckley.
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.