Pitkin’s library is a branch of Vernon Parish Library, which lends less per resident than 67% of systems its size
Pitkin’s library is the Pitkin Branch, a branch of Vernon Parish Library, which serves 45,819 people and lent 141K items last year.
What Pitkin’s library is like
More library cards than residents
47,156 cards for 45,819 people. Cards held by people from outside the service area count too, so the total can pass the population. At the typical library serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, it’s 39%. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
The Vernon Parish Library system offered 104 programs last year, 2.3 per 1,000 residents against a typical 14. Kids & programs ↓
Programs are almost all for children
90% of the 104 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 0 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Open only about 15 hours a week
The Pitkin branch keeps short hours: about 15 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
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; Pitkin’s library is a branch of Vernon Parish Library, so they cover the whole system (45,819 people), not just the Pitkin branch.
What’s behind Pitkin’s civic life grade
Pitkin 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 →
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Vernon Parish Library serves 45,819 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 28 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Vernon Parish Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
141K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
31,719 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 2 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
Find it
Pitkin Branch, 7277 Highway 463, Pitkin.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Vernon Parish Library branch.
New in Pitkin? 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 $1.87 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Pitkin cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $1.2M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $2.3M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.2M 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 47,156 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Pitkin Branch is one branch of Vernon Parish Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 45,819 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 Pitkin
Does Pitkin have a public library?
Yes: Pitkin Branch, 7277 Highway 463, is a branch of Vernon Parish Library, which serves 45,819 people. The branch is open about 15 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Vernon Parish 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 Pitkin’s library?
It logged 2.1 visits and lent 3.1 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Pitkin’s civic life grade?
Pitkin 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 Pitkin.
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.