Luther’s library logs 1.2 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size
Luther Area Public Library serves 3,954 people in and around Luther. Last year it lent 3,378 print books and media and logged 4,875 visits.
What’s behind Luther’s civic life grade
Luther 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 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Luther Area Public Library serves 3,954 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 3 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Luther Area Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
3,378 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
46 programs a year
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
Luther Area Public Library, 115 State Street, Luther.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Luther Area Public Library branch.
New in Luther? 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 Luther cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $68K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $56K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $68K 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 1,817 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Digital loans not reported. The library didn’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
- System-wide. Luther Area Public Library serves 3,954 people in and around Luther, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Luther.
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 Luther
Does Luther have a public library?
Yes. Luther Area Public Library, 115 State Street, serves 3,954 people in and around Luther (the survey’s count) and is open about 26 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Luther Area 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 Luther’s library?
It logged 1.2 visits and lent 0.9 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Luther’s civic life grade?
Luther 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 Luther.
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.