New Berlin’s library logs 0.6 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size
West Sangamon Public Library District serves 4,398 people in and around New Berlin. Last year it lent 8,672 print books and media and logged 2,540 visits.
The short version on New Berlin’s library
Programs are almost all for children
96% of the 52 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 45 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, West Sangamon Public Library District sits below the middle on all five per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on five. How it compares ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 11% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 42% for its size. How it compares ↓
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; West Sangamon Public Library District serves 4,398 people in and around New Berlin, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind New Berlin’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, New Berlin is ahead of 57% of U.S. towns. New Berlin is graded on two of the three inputs. New Berlin’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 →
7 community nonprofits are registered in New Berlin
4.9 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 (0 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
6.9%
6.9% of New Berlin’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 New Berlin’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
West Sangamon Public Library District serves 4,398 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 West Sangamon Public Library District system. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
8,672 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 New Berlin’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
52 programs a year
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
West Sangamon Public Library District, 112 East Illinois Street, New Berlin.
Good at every West Sangamon Public Library District branch.
New in New Berlin? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average New Berlin cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $211K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $155K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $211K 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 502 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. West Sangamon Public Library District serves 4,398 people in and around New Berlin, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just New Berlin.
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 New Berlin
Does New Berlin have a public library?
Yes. West Sangamon Public Library District, 112 East Illinois Street, serves 4,398 people in and around New Berlin (the survey’s count) and is open about 28 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is West Sangamon Public Library District fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is New Berlin’s library?
It logged 0.6 visits and lent 2.0 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is New Berlin’s civic life grade?
B New Berlin is ahead of 57% 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 New Berlin.
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.