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Gwinn Model Town Historic District 2009aPhoto: Andrew Jameson · CC BY-SA 3.0
Forsyth Township Public Library

Gwinn’s library runs 20 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size

Forsyth Township Public Library serves 6,194 people in and around Gwinn. Last year it lent 28K books, movies and e-books and logged 18K visits.

180 West Flint Street, Gwinn 49841 · about 42 hours a week
–Civic lifeNot graded: fewer than 1,000 residents
Borrowed a year
28K
4.5 per resident
Visits a year
18K
3 per resident · Below typical (3)
Programs & events
123
about 2 a week · 3,240 attended
Cardholders
48%
2,968 cards
Open
42 hrs
a week
In brief

What Gwinn’s library is like

Most programs are for young children

76% of the 123 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 40 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓

Forsyth Township Public Library serves more than Gwinn

The library’s service area covers 6,194 people in and around Gwinn, so its per-resident numbers are measured against that wider population. How it compares ↓

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.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Gwinn’s civic life grade

Gwinn isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.

–
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Gwinn’s overall grade.

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 →

How it compares

Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 8 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 3 visits · typical 3Lower than 51%
Borrowing per resident 3.3 print items · typical 3.8Lower than 57%
Digital borrowing 1.2 e-items · typical 1Higher than 57%
Kids’ borrowing 1.3 kids’ items · typical 1.6Lower than 59%
Program attendance 0.5 attendees · typical 0.5Higher than 52%
Programs offered 19.9 per 1,000 residents · typical 34Lower than 71%
Cardholders 48% of residents · typical 42%Higher than 59%
Spending $30 per resident · typical $43Lower than 71%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Forsyth Township Public Library serves 6,194 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 13 items go out

Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.

18K
visits
3 per resident
28K
loans, print + digital
4.5 per resident
123
programs & events
3,240 attended
2,968
library cards
48% of people served
Every open hour13items borrowed
Every week62people at a program
Every day23Wi-Fi sessions
3 staff (full-time equivalent)4 public computers21K books & media on the shelves
What people borrow

Mostly books and media off the shelf

28K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.

28Kloans
Books & media (adults) 45%Kids’ books & media 29%E-books, audio & streaming 26%
How hard the shelves work
1×

Each of the 21K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1 time last year, on average.

From your couch

7,324 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.

Kids & programs

About 2 kids’ programs a week

Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.

Schools in Gwinn →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–540
Ages 6–1153
Teens0
Adults28
All ages2
Little ones
0.8

story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.

8,004
kids’ books & media borrowed
3,240
people at programs
123
programs
The building

Find it

Forsyth Township Public Library, 180 West Flint Street, Gwinn.

42
hours open a week
4,112
square feet
21K
books & media
With a card

E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.

New in Gwinn? The Handbook →

Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.

What your card is worth

For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $2.60 worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Gwinn cardholder borrows.

In a month I’d use…
Books$17 each
1
Kids’ books$12 each
0
E-books & audio$15 each
0
Movies & music$4 each
0
Programs & classes$10 a program
0
Computer & Wi-Fi$3 a session
0
Your card saves you about
$204
a year at retail prices · $17 a month

Who pays for it
$30 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $184K.

Local taxes 89%State 3%Gifts & other 8%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $478K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $184K 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 2,968 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

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 Gwinn

Does Gwinn have a public library?

Yes. Forsyth Township Public Library, 180 West Flint Street, serves 6,194 people in and around Gwinn (the survey’s count) and is open about 42 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Forsyth Township Public 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 Gwinn’s library?

It logged 3.0 visits and lent 4.5 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.

What is Gwinn’s civic life grade?

Gwinn 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 Gwinn.

Town Square →
Start a conversation

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.