Photo: Paul Sableman · CC BY 2.0Wood River’s library runs 87 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24 for libraries its size
Wood River Public Library serves Wood River’s 10,464 residents. Last year it lent 34K print books and media and logged 30K visits.
Wood River’s library, in brief
Four times the programs of a typical library its size
Wood River Public Library ran 911 programs last year, about 18 a week. That’s 87 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24. People show up: 13,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
Most programs are for young children
76% of the 911 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 1.6 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 17% of the people Wood River Public Library serves have a library card, against a typical 40% for its size. How it compares ↓
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 Wood River’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Wood River is ahead of 38% of U.S. towns, #429 of 754 in Illinois. The share of younger adults in volunteering groups holds the grade up; Wood River’s count of community nonprofits pulls it down.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($47K–$78K) 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 →
32 community nonprofits are registered in Wood River
3.1 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 (13 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.
7.9%
7.9% of Wood River’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 Wood River’s residents live; 2022.
About 13 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 2 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Wood River Public Library serves 10,464 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 12 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
34K 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 Wood River’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 34K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1 time last year, on average.
Find it
Wood River Public Library, 326 East Ferguson Avenue, Wood River.
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 $1.73 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Wood River cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $416K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $721K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $416K 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 1,747 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Wood River ranks 3rd of 4 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roxana | Roxana Public Library District fine-free | 9.7 | 55 | B+ |
| Hartford | Hartford Public Library District | 4.1 | 47 | C− |
| Wood River | Wood River Public Library fine-free | 3.2 | 55 | C+ |
| East Alton | East Alton Public Library District fine-free | 1.9 | 46 | C+ |
| Bethalto | Bethalto Public Library District | — | 47 | C+ |
| Rosewood Heights | None of its own | — | — | — unincorporated |
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 Wood River
Does Wood River have a public library?
Yes. Wood River Public Library, 326 East Ferguson Avenue, serves Wood River’s 10,464 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 55 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Wood River Public Library fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Wood River’s library?
It logged 2.8 visits and lent 3.2 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Wood River’s civic life grade?
C+ Wood River is ahead of 38% of U.S. towns on civic life, #429 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 Wood River.
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.