Photo: Chillin662 · CC BY-SA 4.0Greenville’s library is a branch of Washington County Library, which lends less per resident than 88% of systems its size
Greenville’s library is the William Alexander Percy Memorial Library, a branch of Washington County Library, which serves 41,946 people and lent 46K items last year.
Greenville’s library, in brief
The Washington County Library system is used less than most libraries its size
The Washington County Library system records 1.2 visits per resident, against a typical 2.6 for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people. Borrowing is 1.1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.7. It also spends less than most: $19 per resident, against a typical $40. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
The Washington County Library system offered 59 programs last year, 1.4 per 1,000 residents against a typical 14. Kids & programs ↓
Programs are almost all for children
92% of the 59 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 0 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Almost all the borrowing is off the shelf
Only 3% of loans are e-books, audiobooks or streaming, fewer per resident than at 98% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
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; Greenville’s library is a branch of Washington County Library, so they cover the whole system (41,946 people), not just the Greenville branch.
What’s behind Greenville’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Greenville is ahead of 28% of U.S. towns, #37 of 85 in Mississippi. Greenville is graded on two of the three inputs. Greenville’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups pulls it down.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($30K–$50K) 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 →
144 community nonprofits are registered in Greenville
5.1 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 (43 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 3 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
2.5%
2.5% of Greenville’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 Greenville’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Washington County Library serves 41,946 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 7 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Washington County Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
46K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
1,418 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 1 kids’ program a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
Find it
William Alexander Percy Memorial Library, 341 Main Street, Greenville.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Washington County Library branch.
New in Greenville? 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 $1.15 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Greenville cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $785K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $901K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $785K 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 26,446 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. William Alexander Percy Memorial Library is one branch of Washington County Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 41,946 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 Greenville
Does Greenville have a public library?
Yes: William Alexander Percy Memorial Library, 341 Main Street, is a branch of Washington County Library, which serves 41,946 people. The branch is open about 45 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Washington 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 Greenville’s library?
It logged 1.2 visits and lent 1.1 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Greenville’s civic life grade?
C Greenville is ahead of 28% of U.S. towns on civic life, #37 of 85 in Mississippi. 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 Greenville.
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.