Whitewater’s library lends 39 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size
Whitewater Memorial Library serves Whitewater’s 664 residents. Last year it lent 27K books, movies and e-books and logged 13K visits.
The short version on Whitewater’s library
Whitewater uses its library more than almost any town its size
Whitewater Memorial Library logs 20 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries serving under 2,500 people, and lends 39 print items per resident against a typical 3.9. On both counts it beats 97% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 64% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 99% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 82 items per child in Whitewater last year. Kids & programs ↓
A small-town library
Whitewater Memorial Library serves 664 residents with about 2 full-time staff, open about 33 hours a week. It’s compared only with libraries serving under 2,500 people, because per-person numbers always look big in a small town. A year at the library ↓
Programs lean toward adults
63% of the 90 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 24 were for children. Kids & programs ↓
Almost all the borrowing is off the shelf
Only 6% of loans are e-books, audiobooks or streaming, fewer per resident than at 17% of similar-size libraries. The print collection works hard: each item went out about 2.1 times last year. 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.
What’s behind Whitewater’s civic life grade
Whitewater 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 →
90 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.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in Whitewater last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Whitewater Memorial Library serves 664 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 16 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
27K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 12K books and other items on the shelves went out about 2.1 times last year, on average.
1,776 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Whitewater Memorial Library, 118 East Topeka, Whitewater.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Whitewater? 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 $5.52 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Whitewater cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $72K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $397K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $72K 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 520 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whitewater | Whitewater Memorial Library | 41.4 | 33 | — under 1,000 residents |
| Milton Township | Whitewater Memorial Library | 41.4 | 33 | C+ |
| Richland 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. Whitewater’s 13,029 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 Whitewater
Does Whitewater have a public library?
Yes. Whitewater Memorial Library, 118 East Topeka, serves Whitewater’s 664 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 33 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Whitewater Memorial 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 Whitewater’s library?
It logged 19.6 visits and lent 41.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Whitewater’s civic life grade?
Whitewater 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 Whitewater.
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.