Photo: R. Stephens (Rdstephens at en.wikipedia) · Public domainMacon’s library is a branch of Noxubee County Library, which lends less per resident than 98% of systems its size
Macon’s library is the Ada S. Fant Memorial Library, a branch of Noxubee County Library, which serves 9,914 people and lent 4,310 items last year.
The short version on Macon’s library
The Noxubee County Library system is used less than most libraries its size
The Noxubee County Library system records 0.7 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people. Borrowing is 0.3 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8. It also spends less than most: $10 per resident, against a typical $43. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
The Noxubee County Library system offered 48 programs last year, 4.8 per 1,000 residents against a typical 34. Kids & programs ↓
Federal money pays a real share
7% of the budget comes from federal grants, and 59% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
Runs on less money than most
The Noxubee County Library system spends $10 per resident, less than 95% of similar-size libraries (typical: $43). 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; Macon’s library is a branch of Noxubee County Library, so they cover the whole system (9,914 people), not just the Macon branch.
What’s behind Macon’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Macon is ahead of 6% of U.S. towns. Macon is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Macon’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Noxubee County Library spends $10 per resident, against a typical $43 for libraries its size.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($24K–$40K) 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 →
9 community nonprofits are registered in Macon
2.7 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 (6 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
3.0%
3.0% of Macon’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 Macon’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Noxubee County Library serves 9,914 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 1 item goes out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Noxubee County Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
4,310 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
842 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
48 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
Ada S. Fant Memorial Library, 145 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Driv, Macon.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Noxubee County Library branch.
New in Macon? 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 Macon cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $99K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $74K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $99K 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 6,334 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Ada S. Fant Memorial Library is one branch of Noxubee County Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 9,914 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 Macon
Does Macon have a public library?
Yes: Ada S. Fant Memorial Library, 145 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Driv, is a branch of Noxubee County Library, which serves 9,914 people. The branch is open about 40 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Noxubee County Library 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 Macon’s library?
It logged 0.7 visits and lent 0.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Macon’s civic life grade?
D Macon is ahead of 6% 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 Macon.
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.