Photo: Magnolia677 · CC BY 4.0Byhalia’s library is a branch of Marshall County Library, which lends less per resident than 94% of systems its size
Byhalia’s library is the Ruth B. French Library, a branch of Marshall County Library, which serves 34,123 people and lent 27K items last year.
Byhalia’s library, in brief
The Marshall County Library system is used less than most libraries its size
The Marshall County Library system records 0.9 visits per resident, against a typical 2.6 for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people. Borrowing is 0.7 print items per resident, against a typical 3.7. It also spends less than most: $8 per resident, against a typical $40. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
The Marshall County Library system offered 59 programs last year, 1.7 per 1,000 residents against a typical 14. Kids & programs ↓
Programs are almost all for children
85% of the 59 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 10 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 18% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 39% for its size. How it compares ↓
Mississippi pays a big share
22% of the budget comes from the state, and 69% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
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; Byhalia’s library is a branch of Marshall County Library, so they cover the whole system (34,123 people), not just the Byhalia branch.
What’s behind Byhalia’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Byhalia is ahead of 3% of U.S. towns. Byhalia is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Byhalia’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Marshall County Library spends $8 per resident, against a typical $40 for libraries its size.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($29K–$48K) score higher, so income alone doesn’t account for it.
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 →
2 community nonprofits are registered in Byhalia
1.5 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 (2 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
4.3%
4.3% of Byhalia’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 4.4% in the typical Mississippi 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 Byhalia’s residents live; 2022.
Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Marshall County Library serves 34,123 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 6 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Marshall County Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
27K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
2,856 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card.
59 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
Ruth B. French Library, 161 Highway 309, Byhalia.
Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Good at every Marshall County Library branch.
New in Byhalia? 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 $1.75 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Byhalia cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $262K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $458K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $262K 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 6,105 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Ruth B. French Library is one branch of Marshall County Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 34,123 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 Byhalia
Does Byhalia have a public library?
Yes: Ruth B. French Library, 161 Highway 309, is a branch of Marshall County Library, which serves 34,123 people. The branch is open about 28 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Marshall County Library fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Byhalia’s library?
It logged 0.9 visits and lent 0.8 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Byhalia’s civic life grade?
D− Byhalia is ahead of 3% of U.S. towns on civic life. 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 Byhalia.
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.