Photo: TwistedMan1328 · CC BY 4.0Tonganoxie’s library logs 10 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size
Tonganoxie Public Library serves Tonganoxie’s 6,102 residents. Last year it lent 52K books, movies and e-books and logged 64K visits.
Tonganoxie’s library, in brief
Tonganoxie uses its library more than almost any town its size
Tonganoxie Public Library logs 10 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, and lends 8.4 print items per resident against a typical 3.8. On both counts it beats 86% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Programs draw a crowd
17,000 people came to the library’s 543 programs last year: 2.7 per resident, against a typical 0.5, more than at 98% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
Top 10% in Kansas for library use
Tonganoxie ranks #6 of 70 Kansas towns with a library of their own for visits per resident. That’s 10 visits per resident, more than at 94% of similar-size libraries nationwide. How it compares ↓
Nearly everyone in Tonganoxie has a card
5,633 cards for 6,102 people, or 92%. At the typical library serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, it’s 42%. How it compares ↓
Kids borrow more here than almost anywhere
Children’s books and media are 53% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 88% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 20 items per child in Tonganoxie last year. 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.
What’s behind Tonganoxie’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Tonganoxie is ahead of 90% of U.S. towns, #18 of 149 in Kansas. All three inputs are above most U.S. towns; library visits rank 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 →
32 community nonprofits are registered in Tonganoxie
5.4 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 (4 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
9.1%
9.1% of Tonganoxie’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 Tonganoxie’s residents live; 2022.
About 6 kids’ programs a week
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.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in Tonganoxie last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Tonganoxie Public Library serves 6,102 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 15 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
52K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 27K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.9 times last year, on average.
560 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Tonganoxie Public Library, 217 E 4th Street, Tonganoxie.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Tonganoxie? 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 $1.79 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Tonganoxie cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $509K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $911K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $509K 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 5,633 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 Tonganoxie
Does Tonganoxie have a public library?
Yes. Tonganoxie Public Library, 217 E 4th Street, serves Tonganoxie’s 6,102 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 66 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Tonganoxie 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 Tonganoxie’s library?
It logged 10.4 visits and lent 8.5 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Tonganoxie’s civic life grade?
A Tonganoxie is ahead of 90% of U.S. towns on civic life, #18 of 149 in Kansas. 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 Tonganoxie.
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.