Walnut Township’s library logs 28 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries its size
Hepler City Library serves 92 people in and around Walnut Township. Last year it lent 574 books, movies and e-books and logged 2,546 visits.
The short version on Walnut Township’s library
More library cards than residents
163 cards for 92 people. Cards held by people from outside the service area count too, so the total can pass the population. At the typical library serving under 2,500 people, it’s 54%. How it compares ↓
12 times the programs of a typical library its size
Hepler City Library ran 67 programs last year, about 1 a week. That’s 728 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60. People show up: 1,605 attended. Kids & programs ↓
People come to Hepler City Library a lot
Hepler City Library logs 28 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries serving under 2,500 people, more than 99% of similar-size libraries. Borrowing is above typical too, at 5.9 print items per resident. How it compares ↓
Kansas pays a big share
41% of the budget comes from the state, and 37% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
Open only about 16 hours a week
Hepler City Library keeps short hours: about 16 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The buildings ↓
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 Walnut Township’s civic life grade
Walnut Township 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 →
67 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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Hepler City Library serves 92 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
A year at Hepler City Library
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
574 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 5,298 books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.1 time last year, on average.
33 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
2 places to borrow in Walnut Township
Hepler City Library, 105 S. Prairie, Hepler.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Walnut Township? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Other libraries in Walnut Township
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $2.11 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Walnut Township cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $12K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $25K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $12K budget.
Late fines apply to some overdue items.
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 163 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Who has a library of their own, and how much each town borrows. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walnut Township | Hepler City Library | 6.2 | 16 | — under 1,000 residents |
| Walnut | Walnut Public Library | 3.6 | 13 | — under 1,000 residents |
| Grant Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Walnut Grove Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Sherman Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Grant Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
Loans = print + digital items borrowed in the library’s fiscal year, per person it serves. — = no library of its own, a county or regional system (its numbers cover many towns), or no report. Civic life: — = not graded (unincorporated places, whose nonprofits can’t be placed by mailing address, or towns with fewer than two of the three inputs).
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Visits count everyone. Walnut Township’s 2,546 visits include people from nearby towns and summer visitors; the survey has no resident share.
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 Walnut Township
Does Walnut Township have a public library?
Yes. Hepler City Library, 105 S. Prairie, serves 92 people in and around Walnut Township (the survey’s count) and is open about 16 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Hepler City Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
It charges late fines on some overdue items, and it lends e-books and audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Walnut Township’s library?
It logged 27.7 visits and lent 6.2 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Walnut Township’s civic life grade?
Walnut Township 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 Walnut Township.
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.