Sheridan’s library runs 70 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Robert W. Rowe Public Library District serves 4,856 people in and around Sheridan. Last year it lent 11K print books and media and logged 6,321 visits.
The short version on Sheridan’s library
Few residents carry a card
Only 11% of the people Robert W. Rowe Public Library District serves have a library card, against a typical 42% for its size. How it compares ↓
Robert W. Rowe Public Library District serves more than Sheridan
The library’s service area covers 4,856 people in and around Sheridan, so its per-resident numbers are measured against that wider population. How it compares ↓
Programs lean toward adults
65% of the 340 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 88 were for children. 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 Sheridan’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Sheridan is ahead of 48% of U.S. towns. Sheridan is graded on two of the three inputs. The share of younger adults in volunteering groups holds the grade up; Sheridan’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 →
4 community nonprofits are registered in Sheridan
1.7 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 (0 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
11.3%
11.3% of Sheridan’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 Sheridan’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.
Robert W. Rowe Public Library District serves 4,856 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
11K 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 Sheridan’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 0.6 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
Robert W. Rowe Public Library District, 120 East Si Johnson Avenue, Sheridan.
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 $1.14 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Sheridan cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $189K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $216K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $189K 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 541 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Who has a library of their own, and how much each town borrows. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sheridan | Robert W. Rowe Public Library District | 2.2 | 40 | B− |
| Mission Township | Robert W. Rowe Public Library District | 2.2 | 40 | C |
| Serena Township | None of its own | — | — | — too few inputs |
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 Sheridan
Does Sheridan have a public library?
Yes. Robert W. Rowe Public Library District, 120 East Si Johnson Avenue, serves 4,856 people in and around Sheridan (the survey’s count) and is open about 40 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Robert W. Rowe Public Library District fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Sheridan’s library?
It logged 1.3 visits and lent 2.2 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Sheridan’s civic life grade?
B− Sheridan is ahead of 48% 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 Sheridan.
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.