Photo: Chris Flook · CC BY-SA 4.0Austin’s library is a branch of Scott County Public Library, which lends less per resident than 82% of systems its size
Austin’s library is the Austin Branch Library, a branch of Scott County Public Library, which serves 24,384 people and lent 66K items last year.
Austin’s library, in brief
The Scott County Public Library system is used less than most libraries its size
The Scott County Public Library system records 1.2 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people. Borrowing is 1.6 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
The Scott County Public Library system offered 135 programs last year, 5.5 per 1,000 residents against a typical 24. Kids & programs ↓
Open only about 21 hours a week
The Austin branch keeps short hours: about 21 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Most programs are for young children
77% of the 135 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 1 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 16% of the people the system 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; Austin’s library is a branch of Scott County Public Library, so they cover the whole system (24,384 people), not just the Austin branch.
What’s behind Austin’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Austin is ahead of 36% of U.S. towns, #433 of 571 in Indiana. Austin is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Austin’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Among U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($24K–$39K) it does better, ahead of 62%.
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 →
13 community nonprofits are registered in Austin
3.4 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 (12 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.
7.0%
7.0% of Austin’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 9.1% in the typical Indiana 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 Austin’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Scott County Public Library serves 24,384 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 14 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Scott County Public Library system. The library’s own count.
42% of borrowing is digital
66K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
27,660 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 2 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, 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
Austin Branch Library, 26 Union Avenue, Austin.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Scott County Public Library branch.
New in Austin? The Handbook →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 $1.22 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Austin cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $811K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $986K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $811K 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 3,972 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Austin | Austin Branch Library | — | 21 | C+ |
| Jennings Township | Austin Branch Library | — | 21 | C− |
| Vienna Township | Scott County Public Library | — | 50 | 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.
- System-wide. Austin Branch Library is one branch of Scott County Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 24,384 people it serves.
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 Austin
Does Austin have a public library?
Yes: Austin Branch Library, 26 Union Avenue, is a branch of Scott County Public Library, which serves 24,384 people. The branch is open about 21 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Scott County Public Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
It charges late fines on some overdue items, and it lends e-books and audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Austin’s library?
It logged 1.2 visits and lent 2.7 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Austin’s civic life grade?
C+ Austin is ahead of 36% of U.S. towns on civic life, #433 of 571 in Indiana. 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 Austin.
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.