Photo: Brian Stansberry · CC BY 4.0Bloomfield’s library is a branch of Nelson County Public Library, which lends less per resident than 58% of systems its size
Bloomfield’s library is the Bloomfield, a branch of Nelson County Public Library, which serves 47,730 people and lent 225K items last year.
The short version on Bloomfield’s library
Twice the programs of a typical library its size
The Nelson County Public Library system ran 1,831 programs last year, about 35 a week. That’s 38 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 14. Kids & programs ↓
Programs lean toward adults
57% of the 1,831 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 490 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; Bloomfield’s library is a branch of Nelson County Public Library, so they cover the whole system (47,730 people), not just the Bloomfield branch.
What’s behind Bloomfield’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Bloomfield is ahead of 15% of U.S. towns. Bloomfield is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups comes closest to the middle.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($41K–$69K) 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.
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 →
2 community nonprofits are registered in Bloomfield
1.5 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.
Community nonprofits, by kind
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.
7.0%
7.0% of Bloomfield’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 6.6% in the typical Kentucky 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 Bloomfield’s residents live; 2022.
About 9 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, 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 5 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Nelson County Public Library serves 47,730 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 26 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Nelson County Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
225K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
75,675 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Bloomfield, 34 Arnold Lane, Bloomfield.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Nelson County Public Library branch.
New in Bloomfield? 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 $3.01 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Bloomfield cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $2.6M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $7.7M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $2.6M 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 14,050 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Bloomfield is one branch of Nelson County Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 47,730 people it serves.
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 Bloomfield
Does Bloomfield have a public library?
Yes: Bloomfield, 34 Arnold Lane, is a branch of Nelson County Public Library, which serves 47,730 people. The branch is open about 50 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Nelson County 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 Bloomfield’s library?
It logged 2.8 visits and lent 4.7 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Bloomfield’s civic life grade?
D Bloomfield is ahead of 15% 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 Bloomfield.
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.