Jefferson Township’s library is a branch of Pike County Public Library, which lends less per resident than 74% of systems its size
Jefferson Township’s library is the Otwell Branch Library, a branch of Pike County Public Library, which serves 12,250 people and lent 26K items last year.
What stands out about Otwell Branch Library
Read from the library’s own yearly report. The page puts what stands out first.
What’s behind Jefferson Township’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Jefferson Township is ahead of 89% of U.S. towns. Jefferson Township is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups ranks 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 →
8 community nonprofits are registered in Jefferson Township
4.4 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 (3 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
15.3%
15.3% of Jefferson Township’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 Jefferson Township’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 2 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Pike County Public Library serves 12,250 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 6 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Pike County Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
26K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 3 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
Otwell Branch Library, 2301 North Spring Street, Otwell.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Pike County Public Library branch.
New in Jefferson Township? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Jefferson Township cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $791K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $499K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $791K 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 2,884 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson Township | Otwell Branch Library | — | 12 | A |
| Washington Township | Pike County Public Library | — | 44 | A+ |
| Veale Township | None of its own | — | — | D |
| Harrison Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Boone Township | None of its own | — | — | — graded with its twin city |
| Marion Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Madison Township | None of its own | — | — | C |
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. The library didn’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
- System-wide. Otwell Branch Library is one branch of Pike County Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 12,250 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 Jefferson Township
Does Jefferson Township have a public library?
Yes: Otwell Branch Library, 2301 North Spring Street, is a branch of Pike County Public Library, which serves 12,250 people. The branch is open about 12 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Pike 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 Jefferson Township’s library?
It logged 1.3 visits and lent 2.1 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Jefferson Township’s civic life grade?
A Jefferson Township is ahead of 89% 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 Jefferson 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.