Photo: David Coats · CC BY-SA 3.0Onaway’s library is a branch of Presque Isle District Library, which lends less per resident than 55% of systems its size
Onaway’s library is the Onaway Branch Library, a branch of Presque Isle District Library, which serves 14,332 people and lent 51K items last year.
What Onaway’s library is like
Four times the programs of a typical library its size
The Presque Isle District Library system ran 1,205 programs last year, about 23 a week. That’s 84 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24. People show up: 38,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
Open only about 22 hours a week
The Onaway branch keeps short hours: about 22 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; Onaway’s library is a branch of Presque Isle District Library, so they cover the whole system (14,332 people), not just the Onaway branch.
What’s behind Onaway’s civic life grade
Onaway 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 →
About 13 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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 4 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Presque Isle District Library serves 14,332 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 7 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Presque Isle District Library system. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
51K 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.
Find it
Onaway Branch Library, 20774 State Street, Onaway.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Presque Isle District Library branch.
New in Onaway? 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 $1.38 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Onaway cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $907K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.3M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $907K 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 4,518 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Onaway | Onaway Branch Library fine-free | — | 22 | — under 1,000 residents |
| Allis Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| North Allis Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
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.
- Digital loans not reported. The library didn’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
- System-wide. Onaway Branch Library is one branch of Presque Isle District Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 14,332 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 Onaway
Does Onaway have a public library?
Yes: Onaway Branch Library, 20774 State Street, is a branch of Presque Isle District Library, which serves 14,332 people. The branch is open about 22 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Presque Isle District 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 Onaway’s library?
It logged 5.8 visits and lent 3.5 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Onaway’s civic life grade?
Onaway 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 Onaway.
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.