Lindenwood Neighborhood Historic District · Photo: Jim Roberts · CC BY-SA 4.0St. Charles’ library is a branch of Saint Charles City-County Library District, which lends more per resident than 96% of systems its size
St. Charles’s library is the Kathryn Linnemann Branch, a branch of Saint Charles City-County Library District, which serves 405,262 people and lent 6.1M items last year.
St. Charles’s library, in brief
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 55% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 97% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
A system of heavy borrowers
The Saint Charles City-County Library District system lends 11 print items per resident, against a typical 3.2 for libraries serving 100,000+ people, more than 96% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
Big on e-books and audiobooks
Digital borrowing runs 3.9 e-items per resident, against a typical 1.4, higher than at 89% of similar-size libraries. It’s 26% of all loans. What people borrow ↓
Open about 64 hours a week
The St. Charles branch is open about 64 hours a week, averaged over the year. The buildings ↓
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; St. Charles’s library is a branch of Saint Charles City-County Library District, so they cover the whole system (405,262 people), not just the St. Charles branch.
What’s behind St. Charles’ civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, St. Charles is ahead of 73% of U.S. towns, #83 of 229 in Missouri. St. Charles is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups 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 →
301 community nonprofits are registered in St. Charles
4.2 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: human services.
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 (89 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 12 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
9.3%
9.3% of St. Charles’ Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 9.3% in the typical Missouri 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 St. Charles’ residents live; 2022.
About 49 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 all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 100,000+ people across the U.S.
Saint Charles City-County Library District serves 405,262 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 100,000+.
Every hour the doors are open, about 200 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Saint Charles City-County Library District system. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
6.1M loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
1,581,773 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
2 places to borrow in St. Charles
Kathryn Linnemann Branch, 2323 Elm St., St. Charles.
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 Saint Charles City-County Library District branch.
New in St. Charles? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Other Saint Charles City-County Library District branches in St. Charles
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $4.38 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average St. Charles cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $36. Operating budget $2M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $89M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $2M 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 240,337 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Charles | Kathryn Linnemann Branch fine-free | — | 64 | B+ |
| St. Peters | Spencer Road Branch fine-free | — | 62 | B |
| Bridgeton | Bridgeton Trails Branch fine-free | — | 64 | B+ |
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.
- System-wide. Kathryn Linnemann Branch is one branch of Saint Charles City-County Library District, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 405,262 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 St. Charles
Does St. Charles have a public library?
Yes: Kathryn Linnemann Branch, 2323 Elm St., is a branch of Saint Charles City-County Library District, which serves 405,262 people. The branch is open about 64 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Saint Charles City-County Library District 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 St. Charles’ library?
It logged 3.0 visits and lent 14.9 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.1 visits for libraries serving 100,000+ people.
What is St. Charles’ civic life grade?
B+ St. Charles is ahead of 73% of U.S. towns on civic life, #83 of 229 in Missouri. 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 St. Charles.
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.