William P. Hall House · Photo: Sector001 · CC BY-SA 3.0Lancaster’s library logs 1 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size
Schuyler County Library District serves 4,032 people in and around Lancaster. Last year it lent 7,933 books, movies and e-books and logged 4,107 visits.
Lancaster’s library, in brief
Schuyler County Library District is used less than most libraries its size
Schuyler County Library District records 1 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people. Borrowing is 1.7 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8. How it compares ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 10% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 42% for its size. How it compares ↓
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; Schuyler County Library District serves 4,032 people in and around Lancaster, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Lancaster’s civic life grade
Lancaster 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.
Schuyler County Library District serves 4,032 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 Schuyler County Library District system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
7,933 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
1,157 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
120 programs a year
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
Find it
Schuyler County Library District, 109 E Jackson St., Lancaster.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Schuyler County Library District branch.
New in Lancaster? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Lancaster cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $165K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $132K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $165K 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 387 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Schuyler County Library District serves 4,032 people in and around Lancaster, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Lancaster.
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 Lancaster
Does Lancaster have a public library?
Yes. Schuyler County Library District, 109 E Jackson St., serves 4,032 people in and around Lancaster (the survey’s count) and is open about 39 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Schuyler 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 Lancaster’s library?
It logged 1.0 visits and lent 2.0 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Lancaster’s civic life grade?
Lancaster 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 Lancaster.
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.