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Blue Eye Library · part of Stone County Library

Blue Eye’s library is a branch of Stone County Library, which lends less per resident than 83% of systems its size

Blue Eye’s library is the Blue Eye Library, a branch of Stone County Library, which serves 31,076 people and lent 54K items last year.

138 State Hwy Ee, Blue Eye 65611 · about 40 hours a week
–Civic lifeNot graded: fewer than 1,000 residents
Borrowed a year
54K
1.8 per resident
Visits a year
36K
1.2 per resident · Below typical (2.6)
Programs & events
971
about 19 a week · 14K attended
Cardholders
22%
6,682 cards
Open
40 hrs
a week at this branch

What stands out about Blue Eye Library

Read from the library’s own yearly report. The page puts what stands out first.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Blue Eye’s civic life grade

Blue Eye isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.

–
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Blue Eye’s overall grade.

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 →

★ What stands out · Kids & programs

About 7 kids’ programs a week

Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.

Schools in Blue Eye →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–5146
Ages 6–11231
Teens55
Adults271
All ages268
Little ones
2.8

story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.

16K
kids’ books & media borrowed
14K
people at programs
971
programs
How it compares

Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 2 of 8 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 1.2 visits · typical 2.6Lower than 86%
Borrowing per resident 1.3 print items · typical 3.7Lower than 83%
Digital borrowing 0.4 e-items · typical 1.2Lower than 80%
Kids’ borrowing 0.5 kids’ items · typical 1.7Lower than 84%
Program attendance 0.4 attendees · typical 0.3Higher than 66%
Programs offered 31.2 per 1,000 residents · typical 14Higher than 87%
Cardholders 22% of residents · typical 39%Lower than 84%
Spending $26 per resident · typical $40Lower than 72%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Stone County Library serves 31,076 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 8 items go out

Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Stone County Library system. The library’s own count.

36K
visits
1.2 per resident
54K
loans, print + digital
1.8 per resident
971
programs & events
14K attended
6,682
library cards
22% of people served
Every open hour8items borrowed
Every week265people at a program
Every day7Wi-Fi sessions
12 staff (full-time equivalent)32 public computers
What people borrow

Mostly books and media off the shelf

54K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.

54Kloans
Books & media (adults) 46%Kids’ books & media 29%E-books, audio & streaming 25%
From your couch

13,740 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.

The building

Find it

Blue Eye Library, 138 State Hwy Ee, Blue Eye.

40
hours open a week
2,000
square feet
With a card

No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Stone County Library branch.

New in Blue Eye? The Handbook →

Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.

What your card is worth

For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.21 worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Blue Eye cardholder borrows.

In a month I’d use…
Books$17 each
1
Kids’ books$12 each
0
E-books & audio$15 each
0
Movies & music$4 each
0
Programs & classes$10 a program
0
Computer & Wi-Fi$3 a session
0
Your card saves you about
$204
a year at retail prices · $17 a month

Who pays for it
$26 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $797K.

Local taxes 92%State 5%Federal 1%Gifts & other 2%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $965K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $797K 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 6,682 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.

  • System-wide. Blue Eye Library is one branch of Stone County Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 31,076 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 Blue Eye

Does Blue Eye have a public library?

Yes: Blue Eye Library, 138 State Hwy Ee, is a branch of Stone County Library, which serves 31,076 people. The branch is open about 40 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Stone County 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 Blue Eye’s library?

It logged 1.2 visits and lent 1.8 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.

What is Blue Eye’s civic life grade?

Blue Eye 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 Blue Eye.

Town Square →
Start a conversation

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.