Ithaca Downtown Historic District · Photo: H. G. Zimmerman & Co · Public domainIthaca’s library runs 13 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Thompson Home Public Library serves 8,042 people in and around Ithaca. Last year it logged 18K visits.
Ithaca’s library, in brief
Most programs are for young children
76% of the 103 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 1.4 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Nearly everyone the system serves has a card
7,039 cards for 8,042 people, or 88%. At the typical library serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, it’s 42%. 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; Thompson Home Public Library serves 8,042 people in and around Ithaca, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Ithaca’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Ithaca is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns, #133 of 697 in Michigan. Ithaca is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups ranks highest.
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 →
11 community nonprofits are registered in Ithaca
3.8 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 (5 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
15.0%
15.0% of Ithaca’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 12.4% in the typical Michigan 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 Ithaca’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Thompson Home Public Library serves 8,042 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
A year at Thompson Home Public Library
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Thompson Home Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Not reported for 2024: print loans and books & media on the shelves. The survey fills a missing figure with its own estimate; we leave estimates out rather than show them as the library’s count.
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
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
Find it
Thompson Home Public Library, 125 West Center Street, Ithaca.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Thompson Home Public Library branch.
New in Ithaca? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Ithaca cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $207K.
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 7,039 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ithaca | Thompson Home Public Library | — | 43 | A− |
| North Star Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Emerson Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Newark Township | None of its own | — | — | A− |
| Arcada Township | None of its own | — | — | B− |
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.
- Not reported for 2024: print loans and books & media on the shelves. The survey filled the figure with its own estimate, so it is left out.
- System-wide. Thompson Home Public Library serves 8,042 people in and around Ithaca, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Ithaca.
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 Ithaca
Does Ithaca have a public library?
Yes. Thompson Home Public Library, 125 West Center Street, serves 8,042 people in and around Ithaca (the survey’s count) and is open about 43 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Thompson Home 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 Ithaca’s library?
It logged 2.2 visits per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Ithaca’s civic life grade?
A− Ithaca is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns on civic life, #133 of 697 in Michigan. 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 Ithaca.
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.