Photo: Jesster79 · CC BY-SA 3.0Savanna’s library logs 1.1 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size
Savanna Public Library District serves Savanna’s 3,748 residents. Last year it lent 5,215 print books and media and logged 3,956 visits.
The short version on Savanna’s library
Savanna Public Library District is used less than most libraries its size
Savanna Public Library District records 1.1 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people. Borrowing is 1.4 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8. How it compares ↓
Programs are almost all for children
86% of the 94 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 51 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Open only about 22 hours a week
Savanna Public Library District keeps short hours: about 22 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Illinois pays a big share
27% of the budget comes from the state, and 66% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
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 Savanna’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Savanna is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns, #88 of 754 in Illinois. Savanna is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Savanna’s count of community nonprofits 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 →
20 community nonprofits are registered in Savanna
7.1 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 (5 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
8.3%
8.3% of Savanna’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 Savanna’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.
Savanna Public Library District serves 3,748 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 5 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
5,215 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 Savanna’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 19K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.3 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
Savanna Public Library District, 326 Third Street, Savanna.
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 Savanna cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $130K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $108K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $130K 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 2,409 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 Savanna
Does Savanna have a public library?
Yes. Savanna Public Library District, 326 Third Street, serves Savanna’s 3,748 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 22 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Savanna Public Library District fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Savanna’s library?
It logged 1.1 visits and lent 1.4 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Savanna’s civic life grade?
A− Savanna is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns on civic life, #88 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 Savanna.
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.