Virden Township’s library runs 1.3 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Grand Prairie of the West Public Library District serves Virden Township’s 4,547 residents. Last year it lent 9,950 books, movies and e-books and logged 11K visits.
What Virden Township’s library is like
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, Grand Prairie of the West Public Library District sits below the middle on all seven per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on six. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
Grand Prairie of the West Public Library District offered 6 programs last year, 1.3 per 1,000 residents against a typical 34. Kids & programs ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 12% of the people Grand Prairie of the West Public Library District serves have a library card, against a typical 42% for its size. How it compares ↓
A big collection for the borrowing it gets
Grand Prairie of the West Public Library District holds 27,000 books and other items, but the average item went out less than once last year. What people borrow ↓
Almost all the borrowing is off the shelf
Only 8% of loans are e-books, audiobooks or streaming, fewer per resident than at 86% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
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 Virden Township’s civic life grade
Virden Township isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.
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 →
Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Grand Prairie of the West Public Library District serves 4,547 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.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
9,950 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 27K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.3 time last year, on average.
806 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card.
6 programs a year
Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in Virden Township last year.
Find it
Grand Prairie of the West Public Library District, 142 West Jackson Street, Virden.
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 $1.08 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Virden Township cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $160K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $172K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $160K 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 554 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Virden Township ranks 3rd of 4 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auburn Township | Auburn Public Library District | 3.5 | 34 | C |
| Girard Township | Girard Township Library | 2.8 | 29 | A |
| Virden Township | Grand Prairie of the West Public Library District fine-free | 2.2 | 38 | — graded with its twin city |
| Virden | Grand Prairie of the West Public Library District fine-free | 2.2 | 38 | C+ |
| Bois D'Arc Township | Farmersville-Waggoner Public Library District | — | 43 | — under 1,000 residents |
| North Otter Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
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.
- The library’s own count. Libraries report their own visits, loans and programs. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.
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 Virden Township
Does Virden Township have a public library?
Yes. Grand Prairie of the West Public Library District, 142 West Jackson Street, serves Virden Township’s 4,547 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 38 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Grand Prairie of the West Public Library District fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Virden Township’s library?
It logged 2.4 visits and lent 2.2 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Virden Township’s civic life grade?
Virden Township isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Virden Township.
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.