Photo: 5of7 · CC BY-SA 2.0Conrad’s library runs 69 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Conrad Public Library serves 3,996 people in and around Conrad. Last year it lent 23K print books and media and logged 18K visits.
The short version on Conrad’s library
Above typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, Conrad Public Library is above the middle on all six per-resident measures we compare, with six in the top 30%. No single number stands out, and none lags far behind. How it compares ↓
Most programs are for young children
79% of the 274 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 2.4 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
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; Conrad Public Library serves 3,996 people in and around Conrad, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Conrad’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Conrad is ahead of 71% of U.S. towns. Conrad is graded on two of the three inputs. Conrad’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups pulls it down.
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 →
46 community nonprofits are registered in Conrad
17.6 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.
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.
6.1%
6.1% of Conrad’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.0% in the typical Montana 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 Conrad’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Conrad Public Library serves 3,996 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 10 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Conrad Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
23K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Borrow from home with your card.
About 4 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.
Find it
Conrad Public Library, 15 4th Avenue SW, Conrad.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Good at every Conrad Public Library branch.
New in Conrad? 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 $4.31 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Conrad cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $266K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.1M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $266K 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 2,286 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Digital loans not reported. The library didn’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
- System-wide. Conrad Public Library serves 3,996 people in and around Conrad, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Conrad.
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 Conrad
Does Conrad have a public library?
Yes. Conrad Public Library, 15 4th Avenue SW, serves 3,996 people in and around Conrad (the survey’s count) and is open about 44 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Conrad Public Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Conrad’s library?
It logged 4.5 visits and lent 5.7 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Conrad’s civic life grade?
B+ Conrad is ahead of 71% 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 Conrad.
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.