Photo: Chris Light · CC BY-SA 3.0Wheatfield’s library is a branch of Jasper County Public Library, which lends more per resident than 79% of systems its size
Wheatfield’s library is the Wheatfield Branch, a branch of Jasper County Public Library, which serves 30,993 people and lent 288K items last year.
Wheatfield’s library, in brief
Above typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, the Jasper County Public Library system is above the middle on all seven per-resident measures we compare, with seven in the top 30%. No single number stands out, and none lags far behind. How it compares ↓
A well-funded system
The Jasper County Public Library system spends $82 per resident a year, about twice the typical $40 for a library its size. Almost all of it (90%) 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; Wheatfield’s library is a branch of Jasper County Public Library, so they cover the whole system (30,993 people), not just the Wheatfield branch.
What’s behind Wheatfield’s civic life grade
Wheatfield isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.
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 →
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.79 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Wheatfield cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $2.6M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $4.6M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $2.6M 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 16,496 cardholders ÷ 12.
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.
Jasper County Public Library serves 30,993 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 33 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Jasper County Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
288K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
63,503 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 7 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
Wheatfield Branch, 350 South Bierma Street, Wheatfield.
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 Jasper County Public Library branch.
New in Wheatfield? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Wheatfield Branch is one branch of Jasper County Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 30,993 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 Wheatfield
Does Wheatfield have a public library?
Yes: Wheatfield Branch, 350 South Bierma Street, is a branch of Jasper County Public Library, which serves 30,993 people. The branch is open about 51 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Jasper 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 Wheatfield’s library?
It logged 4.0 visits and lent 9.3 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Wheatfield’s civic life grade?
Wheatfield 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 Wheatfield.
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.