Photo: Nyttend · Public domainRoanoke’s library is a branch of Illinois Prairie District Public Library, which lends more per resident than 54% of systems its size
Roanoke’s library is the Roanoke Branch Library, a branch of Illinois Prairie District Public Library, which serves 21,904 people and lent 94K items last year.
The short version on Roanoke’s library
Open only about 18 hours a week
The Roanoke branch keeps short hours: about 18 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Most programs are for young children
66% of the 723 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 6 a week 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; Roanoke’s library is a branch of Illinois Prairie District Public Library, so they cover the whole system (21,904 people), not just the Roanoke branch.
What’s behind Roanoke’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Roanoke is ahead of 30% of U.S. towns. Roanoke is graded on two of the three inputs. The share of younger adults in volunteering groups holds the grade up; Roanoke’s count of community nonprofits pulls it down.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($62K–$103K) score higher, so income alone doesn’t account for it.
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 →
5 community nonprofits are registered in Roanoke
2.5 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 (2 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 1 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
7.6%
7.6% of Roanoke’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 Roanoke’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 4 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Illinois Prairie District Public Library serves 21,904 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 13 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Illinois Prairie District Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
94K 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 Roanoke’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
About 9 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.
Find it
Roanoke Branch Library, 123 East Broad Street, Roanoke.
No late fees. Good at every Illinois Prairie District Public Library branch.
New in Roanoke? 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 $1.62 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Roanoke cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.7M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1M budget.
Fine-free. No late fees on books returned late.
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 6,565 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. Roanoke Branch Library is one branch of Illinois Prairie District Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 21,904 people it serves.
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 Roanoke
Does Roanoke have a public library?
Yes: Roanoke Branch Library, 123 East Broad Street, is a branch of Illinois Prairie District Public Library, which serves 21,904 people. The branch is open about 18 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Illinois Prairie District Public Library fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Roanoke’s library?
It logged 3.1 visits and lent 4.3 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Roanoke’s civic life grade?
C Roanoke is ahead of 30% 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 Roanoke.
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.