Photo: Nyttend · Public domainMilan’s library is a branch of Osgood Public Library, which lends less per resident than 77% of systems its size
Milan’s library is the Milan Branch Library, a branch of Osgood Public Library, which serves 15,367 people and lent 50K items last year.
The short version on Milan’s library
Programs draw a crowd
22,000 people came to the system’s 485 programs last year: 1.4 per resident, against a typical 0.4, more than at 95% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 15% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 40% for its size. How it compares ↓
41% of borrowing happens on a screen
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 41% of loans. Print still makes up 59%, much of it kids’ books. 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; Milan’s library is a branch of Osgood Public Library, so they cover the whole system (15,367 people), not just the Milan branch.
What’s behind Milan’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Milan is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns. Milan 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 Milan
4.1 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 (1 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
13.4%
13.4% of Milan’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 Milan’s residents live; 2022.
About 6 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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Osgood Public Library serves 15,367 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 10 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Osgood Public Library system. The library’s own count.
41% of borrowing is digital
50K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
20,420 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Milan Branch Library, 1171 North Warpath Drive, Milan.
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 Osgood Public Library branch.
New in Milan? 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 $2.01 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Milan cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $496K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $998K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $496K 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 2,268 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Milan Branch Library is one branch of Osgood Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 15,367 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 Milan
Does Milan have a public library?
Yes: Milan Branch Library, 1171 North Warpath Drive, is a branch of Osgood Public Library, which serves 15,367 people. The branch is open about 46 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Osgood 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 Milan’s library?
It logged 2.5 visits and lent 3.2 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Milan’s civic life grade?
A Milan is ahead of 86% 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 Milan.
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.