Photo: Nyttend · Public domainNorth Webster’s library lends 13 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8 for libraries its size
North Webster Community Public Library serves 6,576 people in and around North Webster. Last year it lent 99K books, movies and e-books and logged 48K visits.
The short version on North Webster’s library
One of the busiest library systems its size
North Webster Community Public Library logs 7.3 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, and lends 13 print items per resident against a typical 3.8. On both counts it beats 87% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Kids’ borrowing is a standout
Children’s books and media are 45% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 94% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
Programs draw a crowd
12,000 people came to the system’s 489 programs last year: 1.8 per resident, against a typical 0.5, more than at 93% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
A well-funded system
North Webster Community Public Library spends $111 per resident a year, about twice the typical $43 for a library its size. Almost all of it (88%) comes from local taxes. What your card is worth ↓
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; North Webster Community Public Library serves 6,576 people in and around North Webster, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind North Webster’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, North Webster is ahead of 94% of U.S. towns. North Webster is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; North Webster’s count of community nonprofits 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 North Webster
9.3 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.
9.6%
9.6% of North Webster’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 North Webster’s residents live; 2022.
About 4 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 all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
North Webster Community Public Library serves 6,576 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 39 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole North Webster Community Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
99K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
16,309 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
North Webster Community Public Library, 110 E North Street, North Webster.
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 North Webster Community Public Library branch.
New in North Webster? 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 $2.20 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average North Webster cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $732K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.6M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $732K 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 4,116 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. North Webster Community Public Library serves 6,576 people in and around North Webster, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just North Webster.
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 North Webster
Does North Webster have a public library?
Yes. North Webster Community Public Library, 110 E North Street, serves 6,576 people in and around North Webster (the survey’s count) and is open about 49 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is North Webster Community 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 North Webster’s library?
It logged 7.3 visits and lent 15.0 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is North Webster’s civic life grade?
A North Webster is ahead of 94% 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 North Webster.
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.