St. Ignatius Mission · Photo: Loren T. Vine · CC BY-SA 2.5St. Ignatius’ library logs 0.4 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size
St. Ignatius School-Community Library serves 9,557 people in and around St. Ignatius. Last year it lent 5,184 books, movies and e-books and logged 3,420 visits.
The short version on St. Ignatius’s library
Montana pays a big share
100% of the budget comes from the state, and 0% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
St. Ignatius School-Community Library is used less than most libraries its size
St. Ignatius School-Community Library records 0.4 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people. Borrowing is 0.5 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8. It also spends less than most: $1 per resident, against a typical $43. How it compares ↓
Kids’ books are most of what goes out
Children’s books and media make up 86% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is lower than at 86% of similar-size libraries, so the high share mostly reflects light borrowing by adults. What people borrow ↓
Open only about 16 hours a week
The St. Ignatius branch keeps short hours: about 16 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 12% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 42% for its size. How it compares ↓
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; St. Ignatius School-Community Library serves 9,557 people in and around St. Ignatius, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind St. Ignatius’ civic life grade
St. Ignatius isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.
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 →
Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
St. Ignatius School-Community Library serves 9,557 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 8 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole St. Ignatius School-Community Library system. The library’s own count.
Not reported for 2024: funding. The survey fills a missing figure with its own estimate; we leave estimates out rather than show them as the library’s count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
5,184 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
783 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card.
What kids borrow
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Find it
St. Ignatius School-Community Library, 76 Third Ave, Saint Ignatius.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Good at every St. Ignatius School-Community Library branch.
New in St. Ignatius? 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 $7.69 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average St. Ignatius cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $9,550.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $73K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $9,550 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 1,176 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Not reported for 2024: funding. The survey filled the figure with its own estimate, so it is left out.
- System-wide. St. Ignatius School-Community Library serves 9,557 people in and around St. Ignatius, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just St. Ignatius.
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 St. Ignatius
Does St. Ignatius have a public library?
Yes. St. Ignatius School-Community Library, 76 Third Ave, serves 9,557 people in and around St. Ignatius (the survey’s count) and is open about 16 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is St. Ignatius School-Community 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 St. Ignatius’ library?
It logged 0.4 visits and lent 0.5 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is St. Ignatius’ civic life grade?
St. Ignatius isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in St. Ignatius.
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.