Photo: Finetooth · CC BY-SA 3.0Ennis’ library logs 39 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries its size
Madison Valley Public Library serves 1,305 people in and around Ennis. Last year it lent 37K books, movies and e-books and logged 51K visits.
What Ennis’s library is like
More library cards than residents
2,011 cards for 1,305 people. Cards held by people from outside the service area count too, so the total can pass the population. At the typical library serving under 2,500 people, it’s 54%. How it compares ↓
One of the busiest library systems its size
Madison Valley Public Library logs 39 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries serving under 2,500 people, and lends 18 print items per resident against a typical 3.9. On both counts it beats 96% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Six times the programs of a typical library its size
Madison Valley Public Library ran 479 programs last year, about 9 a week. That’s 367 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60. People show up: 9,323 attended. Kids & programs ↓
Big on e-books and audiobooks
Digital borrowing runs 10 e-items per resident, against a typical 1, higher than at 98% of similar-size libraries. It’s 37% of all loans. What people borrow ↓
Kids’ borrowing is a standout
Children’s books and media are 31% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 91% of similar-size libraries. 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; Madison Valley Public Library serves 1,305 people in and around Ennis, and its numbers cover all of them; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Ennis’ civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Ennis is ahead of 94% of U.S. towns. Ennis is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Ennis’ count of community nonprofits 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 →
13 community nonprofits are registered in Ennis
16.7 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
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.
9.0%
9.0% of Ennis’ 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 Ennis’ residents live; 2022.
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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Madison Valley Public Library serves 1,305 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 15 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Madison Valley Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
37K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
13,642 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Madison Valley Public Library, 210 East Main Street, Ennis.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Madison Valley Public Library branch.
New in Ennis? 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 $2.66 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Ennis cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $258K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $685K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $258K 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 2,011 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Visits count everyone. Ennis’ 50,698 visits include people from nearby towns and summer visitors; the survey has no resident share.
- System-wide. Madison Valley Public Library serves 1,305 people in and around Ennis, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Ennis.
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 Ennis
Does Ennis have a public library?
Yes. Madison Valley Public Library, 210 East Main Street, serves 1,305 people in and around Ennis (the survey’s count) and is open about 48 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Madison Valley Public 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 Ennis’ library?
It logged 38.8 visits and lent 28.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Ennis’ civic life grade?
A Ennis is ahead of 94% 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 Ennis.
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.