Williams, Spafford, Hotel · Photo: Jon Roanhaus · CC BY-SA 3.0Caledonia’s library lends 2.5 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8 for libraries its size
Caledonia Public Library serves 5,860 people in and around Caledonia. Last year it lent 15K print books and media and logged 18K visits.
The short version on Caledonia’s library
Most programs are for young children
79% of the 157 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 1.3 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Programs draw a crowd
11,000 people came to the system’s 157 programs last year: 1.8 per resident, against a typical 0.5, more than at 93% of similar-size libraries. 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; Caledonia Public Library serves 5,860 people in and around Caledonia, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Caledonia’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Caledonia is ahead of 85% of U.S. towns, #37 of 271 in Minnesota. Caledonia is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Caledonia’s count of community nonprofits 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 →
37 community nonprofits are registered in Caledonia
13.1 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 (4 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
7.6%
7.6% of Caledonia’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 7.4% in the typical Minnesota 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 Caledonia’s residents live; 2022.
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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 2 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Caledonia Public Library serves 5,860 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, for the whole Caledonia Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
15K 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
Caledonia Public Library, 231 E Main Street, Caledonia.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Caledonia Public Library branch.
New in Caledonia? 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 $2.62 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Caledonia cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $130K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $340K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $130K 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 1,190 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Caledonia | Caledonia Public Library fine-free | — | 37 | A− |
| Caledonia Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Mayville 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. Caledonia Public Library serves 5,860 people in and around Caledonia, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Caledonia.
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 Caledonia
Does Caledonia have a public library?
Yes. Caledonia Public Library, 231 E Main Street, serves 5,860 people in and around Caledonia (the survey’s count) and is open about 37 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Caledonia Public 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 Caledonia’s library?
It logged 3.1 visits and lent 2.5 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Caledonia’s civic life grade?
A− Caledonia is ahead of 85% of U.S. towns on civic life, #37 of 271 in Minnesota. 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 Caledonia.
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.