North Branch’s library logs 4.1 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size
North Branch Township Library serves 3,571 people in and around North Branch. Last year it lent 13K print books and media and logged 15K visits.
North Branch’s library, in brief
More library cards than residents
8,220 cards for 3,571 people. Cards held by people from outside the service area count too, so the total can pass the population. At the typical library serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, it’s 42%. How it compares ↓
North Branch Township Library serves more than North Branch
The library’s service area covers 3,571 people in and around North Branch, so its per-resident numbers are measured against that wider population. How it compares ↓
A big collection for the borrowing it gets
North Branch Township Library holds 32,000 books and other items, but the average item went out less than once last year. What people borrow ↓
Most programs are for young children
65% of the 110 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 40 for ages 0–5. 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.
What’s behind North Branch’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, North Branch is ahead of 62% of U.S. towns. North Branch is graded on two of the three inputs. The share of younger adults in volunteering groups holds the grade up; North Branch’s count of community nonprofits pulls it down.
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 →
3 community nonprofits are registered in North Branch
2.3 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.
15.1%
15.1% of North Branch’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 North Branch’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 4 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
North Branch Township Library serves 3,571 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 8 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
13K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 32K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.4 time last year, on average.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 1 kids’ program a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, 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
North Branch Township Library, 3714 Huron Road, North Branch.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in North Branch? 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 $1.42 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average North Branch cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $168K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $239K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $168K 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 8,220 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.
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 North Branch
Does North Branch have a public library?
Yes. North Branch Township Library, 3714 Huron Road, serves 3,571 people in and around North Branch (the survey’s count) and is open about 32 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is North Branch Township 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 North Branch’s library?
It logged 4.1 visits and lent 3.5 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is North Branch’s civic life grade?
B North Branch is ahead of 62% 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 North Branch.
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.