Parker’s library lends 1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size
Linn County Library District #1 serves Parker’s 2,240 residents. Last year it lent 2,546 books, movies and e-books and logged 5,249 visits.
What Parker’s library is like
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving under 2,500 people, Linn County Library District #1 sits below the middle on all seven per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on four. How it compares ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 19% of the people Linn County Library District #1 serves have a library card, against a typical 54% for its size. How it compares ↓
People visit, but borrow less than most
Linn County Library District #1 lends 1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries serving under 2,500 people, fewer than 91% of similar-size libraries, though visits are closer to typical. What people borrow ↓
Programs lean toward adults
64% of the 129 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 47 were for children. Kids & programs ↓
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; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Parker’s civic life grade
Parker 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 →
Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Linn County Library District #1 serves 2,240 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 1 item goes out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
2,546 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 10K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.2 time last year, on average.
376 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
129 programs a year
Story times, clubs, classes and events, 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
Linn County Library District #1, 234 W. Main, Parker.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Parker? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Parker cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $112K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $48K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $112K 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 422 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- The library’s own count. Libraries report their own visits, loans and programs. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.
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 Parker
Does Parker have a public library?
Yes. Linn County Library District #1, 234 W. Main, serves Parker’s 2,240 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 40 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Linn County Library District #1 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 Parker’s library?
It logged 2.3 visits and lent 1.1 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Parker’s civic life grade?
Parker 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 Parker.
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.