Jefferson Township’s library is a branch of Wells County Public Library, which lends more per resident than 91% of systems its size
Jefferson Township’s library is the Ossian Branch, a branch of Wells County Public Library, which serves 27,681 people and lent 418K items last year.
What Jefferson Township’s library is like
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 60% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 95% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
One of the busiest library systems its size
The Wells County Public Library system logs 4.9 visits per resident, against a typical 2.6 for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, and lends 11 print items per resident against a typical 3.7. On both counts it beats 86% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Big on e-books and audiobooks
Digital borrowing runs 4.3 e-items per resident, against a typical 1.2, higher than at 95% of similar-size libraries. It’s 29% of all loans. 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; Jefferson Township’s library is a branch of Wells County Public Library, so they cover the whole system (27,681 people), not just the Jefferson Township branch.
What’s behind Jefferson Township’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Jefferson Township is ahead of 22% of U.S. towns, #515 of 571 in Indiana. Jefferson Township is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Jefferson Township’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($55K–$92K) 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 →
19 community nonprofits are registered in Jefferson Township
3.3 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
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 (6 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
5.7%
5.7% 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 all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Wells County Public Library serves 27,681 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 75 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Wells County Public Library system. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
418K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
119,587 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 10 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
Ossian Branch, 207 North Jefferson Street, Ossian.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Wells 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.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $2.87 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: $40. Operating budget $2.2M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $6.5M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $2.2M 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 13,979 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 | Ossian Branch fine-free | — | 53 | C− |
| Preble Township | None of its own | — | — | D− |
| Lancaster Township | None of its own | — | — | C |
| Pleasant Township | None of its own | — | — | D |
| Union Township | None of its own | — | — | C |
| Marion Township | None of its own | — | — | D |
| Kirkland Township | None of its own | — | — | — graded with its twin city |
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. Ossian Branch is one branch of Wells County Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 27,681 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: Ossian Branch, 207 North Jefferson Street, is a branch of Wells County Public Library, which serves 27,681 people. The branch is open about 53 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Wells County Public Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks and research databases with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Jefferson Township’s library?
It logged 4.9 visits and lent 15.1 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Jefferson Township’s civic life grade?
C− Jefferson Township is ahead of 22% of U.S. towns on civic life, #515 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 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.