Photo: Kbh3rd · CC BY 4.0Alton’s library is a branch of Oregon County Library District, which lends less per resident than 62% of systems its size
Alton’s library is the Alton Public Library, a branch of Oregon County Library District, which serves 8,635 people and lent 30K items last year.
Alton’s library, in brief
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, the Oregon County Library District system sits below the middle on all seven per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on four. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
The Oregon County Library District system offered 42 programs last year, 4.9 per 1,000 residents against a typical 34. 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; Alton’s library is a branch of Oregon County Library District, so they cover the whole system (8,635 people), not just the Alton branch.
What’s behind Alton’s civic life grade
Alton 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 →
Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Oregon County Library District serves 8,635 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 4 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Oregon County Library District system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
30K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
4,110 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
42 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
Alton Public Library, 20 Court Square, Alton.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Oregon County Library District branch.
New in Alton? 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 $1.98 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Alton cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $255K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $505K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $255K 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 2,943 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Alton Public Library is one branch of Oregon County Library District, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 8,635 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 Alton
Does Alton have a public library?
Yes: Alton Public Library, 20 Court Square, is a branch of Oregon County Library District, which serves 8,635 people. The branch is open about 40 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Oregon County Library District 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 Alton’s library?
It logged 2.7 visits and lent 3.5 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Alton’s civic life grade?
Alton 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 Alton.
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.