Photo: formulanone · CC BY-SA 2.0Momence’s library runs 80 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Edward Chipman Public Library serves 6,150 people in and around Momence. Last year it lent 16K print books and media and logged 8,549 visits.
What stands out about Edward Chipman Public Library
Read from the library’s own yearly report. The page puts what stands out first.
What’s behind Momence’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Momence is ahead of 68% of U.S. towns, #198 of 754 in Illinois. Momence is graded on two of the three inputs. Momence’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups pulls it down.
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 →
22 community nonprofits are registered in Momence
6.7 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 (8 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
6.9%
6.9% of Momence’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 Momence’s residents live; 2022.
About 3 kids’ programs 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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Edward Chipman Public Library serves 6,150 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 Edward Chipman Public Library 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 Momence’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
A National Register landmark since 2017
Edward Chipman Public Library, 126 North Locust Street, Momence.
Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Edward Chipman Public Library
Chipman, Edward, Public Library was added to the National Register of Historic Places on Feb 7, 2017. It is significant for its education at the local level.
The Edward Chipman Public Library is a historic public library located at 126 N. Locust Street in Momence, Illinois. Momence's library board was formed in 1901, and the town's first library opened in 1907 in three rooms in the Momence State and Savings Bank. Edward Chipman, the bank's main stockholder, left $10,000 for a new library building upon his death in 1910, and the current building was completed in 1912.
More about the building →For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $2.53 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Momence cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $154K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $391K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $154K 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 3,728 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.
- System-wide. Edward Chipman Public Library serves 6,150 people in and around Momence, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Momence.
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 Momence
Does Momence have a public library?
Yes. Edward Chipman Public Library, 126 North Locust Street, serves 6,150 people in and around Momence (the survey’s count) and is open about 48 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Edward Chipman Public Library fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Momence’s library?
It logged 1.4 visits and lent 2.6 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Momence’s civic life grade?
B+ Momence is ahead of 68% of U.S. towns on civic life, #198 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 Momence.
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. Building history: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places; photo via Wikimedia Commons. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.