Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Pierceton

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
Pierceton-indiana-downtownPhoto: Public domain · Public domain
Pierceton & Washington Township Public Library

Pierceton’s library logs 0.3 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size

Pierceton & Washington Township Public Library serves 4,145 people in and around Pierceton. Last year it lent 4,121 books, movies and e-books and logged 1,400 visits.

101 Catholic Street, Pierceton 46562 · about 25 hours a week
–Civic lifeNot graded: fewer than 1,000 residents
Borrowed a year
4,121
1 per resident
Visits a year
1,400
0.3 per resident · Below typical (3)
Programs & events
13
about 1 a week · 68 attended
Cardholders
9%
378 cards
Open
25 hrs
a week at this branch
In brief

The short version on Pierceton’s library

Pierceton & Washington Township Public Library is used less than most libraries its size

Pierceton & Washington Township Public Library records 0.3 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people. Borrowing is 1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8. How it compares ↓

Few programs for a library this size

Pierceton & Washington Township Public Library offered 13 programs last year, 3.1 per 1,000 residents against a typical 34. Kids & programs ↓

Few residents carry a card

Only 9% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 42% 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; Pierceton & Washington Township Public Library serves 4,145 people in and around Pierceton, and its numbers cover all of them.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Pierceton’s civic life grade

Pierceton isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.

–
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Pierceton’s overall grade.

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 →

How it compares

Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 0.3 visits · typical 3Bottom 10%
Borrowing per resident 1 print items · typical 3.8Bottom 10%
Digital borrowing 0 e-items · typical 1Bottom 10%
Kids’ borrowing 0.4 kids’ items · typical 1.6Lower than 85%
Program attendance 0 attendees · typical 0.5Bottom 10%
Programs offered 3.1 per 1,000 residents · typical 34Bottom 10%
Cardholders 9% of residents · typical 42%Bottom 10%
Spending $27 per resident · typical $43Lower than 74%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Pierceton & Washington Township Public Library serves 4,145 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 3 items go out

Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Pierceton & Washington Township Public Library system. The library’s own count.

1,400
visits
0.3 per resident
4,121
loans, print + digital
1 per resident
13
programs & events
68 attended
378
library cards
9% of people served
Every open hour3items borrowed
Every week1people at a program
Every day0Wi-Fi sessions
2 staff (full-time equivalent)3 public computers
What people borrow

Mostly books and media off the shelf

4,121 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.

4,121loans
Books & media (adults) 57%Kids’ books & media 43%E-books, audio & streaming 0%
Kids & programs

13 programs a year

Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.

Schools in Pierceton →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–50
Ages 6–1110
Teens1
Adults0
All ages2
1,759
kids’ books & media borrowed
68
people at programs
13
programs
The building

Find it

Pierceton & Washington Township Public Library, 101 Catholic Street, Pierceton.

25
hours open a week
3,800
square feet
With a card

No late fees. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Pierceton & Washington Township Public Library branch.

New in Pierceton? The Handbook →

Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.

What your card is worth

What a library card is worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Pierceton cardholder borrows.

In a month I’d use…
Books$17 each
1
Kids’ books$12 each
0
E-books & audio$15 each
0
Movies & music$4 each
0
Programs & classes$10 a program
0
Computer & Wi-Fi$3 a session
0
Your card saves you about
$204
a year at retail prices · $17 a month

Who pays for it
$27 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $113K.

Local taxes 87%State 6%Gifts & other 8%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $62K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $113K 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 378 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.

  • System-wide. Pierceton & Washington Township Public Library serves 4,145 people in and around Pierceton, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Pierceton.

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 Pierceton

Does Pierceton have a public library?

Yes. Pierceton & Washington Township Public Library, 101 Catholic Street, serves 4,145 people in and around Pierceton (the survey’s count) and is open about 25 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Pierceton & Washington Township Public Library fine-free?

Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).

How busy is Pierceton’s library?

It logged 0.3 visits and lent 1.0 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.

What is Pierceton’s civic life grade?

Pierceton isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more. How it works.

Book talk

Reading, story times and the library in Pierceton.

Town Square →
Start a conversation

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.