Photo: Teemu08 at en.wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0Western Springs’ library lends 16 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size
Thomas Ford Memorial Library serves Western Springs’s 13,629 residents. Last year it lent 213K print books and media and logged 91K visits.
The short version on Western Springs’s library
Western Springs uses its library more than almost any town its size
Thomas Ford Memorial Library logs 6.7 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people, and lends 16 print items per resident against a typical 3.9. On both counts it beats 89% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Top 10% in Illinois for borrowing
Western Springs ranks #16 of 259 Illinois towns with a library of their own for items borrowed per resident. Print borrowing alone runs 16 items per resident, more than at 98% of similar-size libraries nationwide. How it compares ↓
Programs draw a crowd
23,000 people came to the library’s 617 programs last year: 1.7 per resident, against a typical 0.4, more than at 97% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
Western Springs out-borrows every town next door
At 15.6 loans per resident, Western Springs leads the four towns here. The closest is Lyons Township, at 15.3. Libraries next door ↓
Western Springs invests in its library
Thomas Ford Memorial Library spends $135 per resident a year, about three times the typical $43 for a library its size. Almost all of it (96%) comes from local taxes. 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 Western Springs’ civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Western Springs is ahead of 88% of U.S. towns, #57 of 754 in Illinois. All three inputs are above most U.S. towns; library visits rank 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 →
62 community nonprofits are registered in Western Springs
4.6 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: education.
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 (8 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.
10.8%
10.8% of Western Springs’ 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 Western Springs’ residents live; 2022.
About 5 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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Thomas Ford Memorial Library serves 13,629 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 64 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
213K 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 Western Springs’ library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 84K books and other items on the shelves went out about 2.5 times last year, on average.
Find it
Thomas Ford Memorial Library, 800 Chestnut Street, Western Springs.
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 $2.12 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Western Springs cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1.8M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $3.9M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.8M 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 7,604 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Western Springs borrows the most per resident of the 4 towns here. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western Springs | Thomas Ford Memorial Library fine-free | 15.6 | 64 | A |
| Lyons Township | Lagrange Public Library fine-free | 15.3 | 67 | C |
| Hinsdale | Hinsdale Public Library fine-free | 14.7 | 67 | A− |
| Proviso Township | Forest Park Public Library fine-free | 7.2 | 69 | C− |
| Indian Head Park | None of its own | — | — | B |
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 Western Springs
Does Western Springs have a public library?
Yes. Thomas Ford Memorial Library, 800 Chestnut Street, serves Western Springs’ 13,629 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 64 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Thomas Ford Memorial Library fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Western Springs’ library?
It logged 6.7 visits and lent 15.6 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Western Springs’ civic life grade?
A Western Springs is ahead of 88% of U.S. towns on civic life, #57 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 Western Springs.
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.