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Silver Lake Library

Silver Lake’s library lends 10 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size

Silver Lake Library serves 1,888 people in and around Silver Lake. Last year it lent 20K books, movies and e-books and logged 9,014 visits.

203 Railroad, Silver Lake 66539 · about 48 hours a week
C−Civic lifeAhead of 22% of U.S. towns. Nonprofits and volunteering.
Directions (785) 582-5141 What’s a card worth?
Borrowed a year
20K
10.4 per resident
Visits a year
9,014
4.8 per resident · Above typical (3.5)
Programs & events
136
about 3 a week · 3,073 attended
Cardholders
61%
1,155 cards
Open
48 hrs
a week
In brief

Silver Lake’s library, in brief

More than half the print loans are for kids

Children’s books and media are 67% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 94% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓

Gifts and endowments pay a real share

33% of the library’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 66%. What your card is worth ↓

Almost all the borrowing is off the shelf

Only 1% of loans are e-books, audiobooks or streaming, fewer per resident than at 79% of similar-size libraries. 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; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Silver Lake’s civic life grade

On community nonprofits and volunteering, Silver Lake is ahead of 22% of U.S. towns. Silver Lake is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Silver Lake’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.

C−
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Silver Lake’s overall grade.
–Library visitsServed by a county or regional system, so there is no town figureC+Community nonprofits3.5 per 1,000 residents · KS towns 4.2 · U.S. 3.7C−Volunteering5.3% of adults 25–44 · KS towns 8.7% · U.S. 7.5%
All U.S. towns we grade (17,556)Ahead of 22%
FewerMore
U.S. towns with similar incomes, $43K–$71K (6,831)Ahead of 21%

Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($43K–$71K) score higher, so income alone doesn’t account for it.

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.

How sure. Graded on two inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. Silver Lake is small (1,316 residents), so a few dozen organizations or visits move its per-resident figures; the volunteering share is a 2022 estimate from Facebook users aged 25–44.

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 →

Places to belong

5 community nonprofits are registered in Silver Lake

3.5 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.

Community nonprofits, by kind

Arts & culture00.00 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.24
Youth, sports & recreation00.32 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.52
Civic groups, clubs & veterans21.55 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.74
Human services00.32 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.59
Education20.97 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.43
Health00.00 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.16
Environment & animals00.00 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.17
Other00.32 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.47

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.

Volunteering

5.3%

5.3% of Silver Lake’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.7% in the typical Kansas 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 Silver Lake’s residents live; 2022.

★ What stands out · Kids & programs

About 1 kids’ program a week

Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.

Schools in Silver Lake →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–546
Ages 6–1130
Teens4
Adults34
All ages22
Little ones
0.9

story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.

13K
kids’ books & media borrowed
3,073
people at programs
136
programs
How it compares

Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 4.8 visits · typical 3.5Higher than 65%
Borrowing per resident 10.4 print items · typical 3.9Higher than 87%
Digital borrowing 0.1 e-items · typical 1Lower than 79%
Kids’ borrowing 7 kids’ items · typical 1.4Top 10%
Program attendance 1.6 attendees · typical 0.7Higher than 79%
Programs offered 72 per 1,000 residents · typical 60Higher than 58%
Cardholders 61% of residents · typical 54%Higher than 57%
Spending $107 per resident · typical $54Higher than 85%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Silver Lake Library serves 1,888 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 8 items go out

Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.

9,014
visits
4.8 per resident
20K
loans, print + digital
10.4 per resident
136
programs & events
3,073 attended
1,155
library cards
61% of people served
Every open hour8items borrowed
Every week59people at a program
Every day5Wi-Fi sessions
3 staff (full-time equivalent)6 public computers11K books & media on the shelves
What people borrow

More than half the print loans are kids’ books

20K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.

20Kloans
Books & media (adults) 33%Kids’ books & media 67%E-books, audio & streaming 1%
How hard the shelves work
1.8×

Each of the 11K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.8 times last year, on average.

From your couch

99 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.

The building

Find it

Silver Lake Library, 203 Railroad, Silver Lake.

Directions(785) 582-5141
48
hours open a week
2,420
square feet
11K
books & media
With a card

No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.

New in Silver Lake? The Handbook →

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

What your card is worth

For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.50 worth

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

In a month I’d use…
Books$17 each
1
Kids’ books$12 each
1
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
$348
a year at retail prices · $29 a month

Who pays for it
$107 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $203K.

Local taxes 66%State 1%Federal 0%Gifts & other 33%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $305K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $203K 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 1,155 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

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 Silver Lake

Does Silver Lake have a public library?

Yes. Silver Lake Library, 203 Railroad, serves 1,888 people in and around Silver Lake (the survey’s count) and is open about 48 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Silver Lake 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 Silver Lake’s library?

It logged 4.8 visits and lent 10.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.

What is Silver Lake’s civic life grade?

C− Silver Lake is ahead of 22% 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 Silver Lake.

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.