Morton’s library lends 15 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size
Morton Public Library District serves Morton’s 17,117 residents. Last year it lent 251K print books and media and logged 90K visits.
Morton’s library, in brief
Programs are almost all for children
86% of the 766 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 7.8 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Top 10% in Illinois for borrowing
Morton ranks #23 of 259 Illinois towns with a library of their own for items borrowed per resident. Print borrowing alone runs 15 items per resident, more than at 97% of similar-size libraries nationwide. How it compares ↓
Still charges late fines, unlike its neighbors
Morton Public Library District charges late fines on some overdue items. Three of the five libraries in neighboring towns have dropped them. What your card is worth ↓
Morton out-borrows every town next door
At 14.7 loans per resident, Morton leads the six towns here. The closest is Morton Township, at 14.7. Libraries next door ↓
Programs draw a crowd
21,000 people came to the library’s 766 programs last year: 1.2 per resident, against a typical 0.4, more than at 92% of similar-size libraries. 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.
What’s behind Morton’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Morton is ahead of 62% of U.S. towns, #241 of 754 in Illinois. Library visits hold the grade up; Morton’s count of community nonprofits 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 →
48 community nonprofits are registered in Morton
2.9 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
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 (21 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
8.8%
8.8% of Morton’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 Morton’s residents live; 2022.
Books and media off the shelf
251K 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 Morton’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 82K books and other items on the shelves went out about 3.1 times last year, on average.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Morton Public Library District serves 17,117 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 83 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
About 13 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
Morton Public Library District, 315 West Pershing Street, Morton.
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 $3.90 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Morton cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1.2M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $4.5M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.2M 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 6,951 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Morton borrows the most per resident of the 6 towns here. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morton | Morton Public Library District | 14.7 | 58 | B |
| Morton Township | Morton Public Library District | 14.7 | 58 | — graded with its twin city |
| East Peoria | Fondulac Public Library District fine-free | 7.5 | 61 | B− |
| Fondulac Township | Fondulac Public Library District fine-free | 7.5 | 61 | C+ |
| Washington Township | Washington District Library fine-free | 6.6 | 59 | B |
| Groveland Township | Creve Coeur Public Library District | 6.0 | 41 | 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.
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 Morton
Does Morton have a public library?
Yes. Morton Public Library District, 315 West Pershing Street, serves Morton’s 17,117 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 58 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Morton Public Library District fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Morton’s library?
It logged 5.3 visits and lent 14.7 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Morton’s civic life grade?
B Morton is ahead of 62% of U.S. towns on civic life, #241 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 Morton.
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.