Photo: Nyttend · Public domainClinton’s library is a branch of Sampson-Clinton Public Library, which lends less per resident than 73% of systems its size
Clinton’s library is the J.C. Holliday Library, a branch of Sampson-Clinton Public Library, which serves 59,514 people and lent 130K items last year.
Clinton’s library, in brief
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, the Sampson-Clinton Public Library system sits below the middle on all seven per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on seven. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
The Sampson-Clinton Public Library system offered 117 programs last year, 2 per 1,000 residents against a typical 14. Kids & programs ↓
Fewer visits than most libraries its size
The Sampson-Clinton Public Library system records 0.6 visits per resident, against a typical 2.6 for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, below 96% of similar-size libraries. Borrowing holds up better, at 1.9 print items per resident. How it compares ↓
Runs on less money than most
The Sampson-Clinton Public Library system spends $13 per resident, less than 91% of similar-size libraries (typical: $40). 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; Clinton’s library is a branch of Sampson-Clinton Public Library, so they cover the whole system (59,514 people), not just the Clinton branch.
What’s behind Clinton’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Clinton is ahead of 32% of U.S. towns, #98 of 234 in North Carolina. Clinton is graded on two of the three inputs. Clinton’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 ($34K–$56K) 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 →
43 community nonprofits are registered in Clinton
5.2 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 (19 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 2 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
3.8%
3.8% of Clinton’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 5.2% in the typical North Carolina 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 Clinton’s residents live; 2022.
Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Sampson-Clinton Public Library serves 59,514 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 20 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Sampson-Clinton Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
130K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
14,490 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
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
Find it
J.C. Holliday Library, 217 Graham St., Clinton.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Sampson-Clinton Public Library branch.
New in Clinton? 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 $2.46 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Clinton cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $788K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.9M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $788K 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 17,569 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. J.C. Holliday Library is one branch of Sampson-Clinton Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 59,514 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 Clinton
Does Clinton have a public library?
Yes: J.C. Holliday Library, 217 Graham St., is a branch of Sampson-Clinton Public Library, which serves 59,514 people. The branch is open about 44 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Sampson-Clinton Public 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 Clinton’s library?
It logged 0.6 visits and lent 2.2 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Clinton’s civic life grade?
C Clinton is ahead of 32% of U.S. towns on civic life, #98 of 234 in North Carolina. 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 Clinton.
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.