Photo: Brian Stansberry · CC BY 4.0Lincolnton’s library is a branch of Lincoln County Public Library, which lends less per resident than 73% of systems its size
Lincolnton’s library is the Charles R. Jonas Library, a branch of Lincoln County Public Library, which serves 94,819 people and lent 359K items last year.
What Lincolnton’s library is like
Kids’ books are most of what goes out
Children’s books and media make up 67% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is lower than at 60% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
48% of borrowing happens on a screen
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 48% of loans, more per resident than at 67% of similar-size libraries. Print still makes up 52%, much of it kids’ books. What people borrow ↓
Open about 65 hours a week
The Lincolnton branch is open about 65 hours a week, averaged over the year. The building ↓
Most programs are for young children
66% of the 1,042 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 6.4 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; Lincolnton’s library is a branch of Lincoln County Public Library, so they cover the whole system (94,819 people), not just the Lincolnton branch.
What’s behind Lincolnton’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Lincolnton is ahead of 32% of U.S. towns, #97 of 234 in North Carolina. Lincolnton is graded on two of the three inputs. Lincolnton’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 ($35K–$58K) 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 →
57 community nonprofits are registered in Lincolnton
4.8 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 (20 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
4.5%
4.5% of Lincolnton’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 Lincolnton’s residents live; 2022.
48% of borrowing is digital
359K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
171,423 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Lincoln County Public Library serves 94,819 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 42 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Lincoln County Public Library system. The library’s own count.
About 13 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
Charles R. Jonas Library, 306 W Main St., Lincolnton.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Lincoln County Public Library branch.
New in Lincolnton? 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 $2.14 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Lincolnton cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $2.5M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $5.4M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $2.5M 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 51,082 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Charles R. Jonas Library is one branch of Lincoln County Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 94,819 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 Lincolnton
Does Lincolnton have a public library?
Yes: Charles R. Jonas Library, 306 W Main St., is a branch of Lincoln County Public Library, which serves 94,819 people. The branch is open about 65 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Lincoln County 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 Lincolnton’s library?
It logged 2.7 visits and lent 3.8 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Lincolnton’s civic life grade?
C Lincolnton is ahead of 32% of U.S. towns on civic life, #97 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 Lincolnton.
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.