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David A. Barnes HouseDavid A. Barnes House · Photo: United States Governemtn · Public domain
Elizabeth Sewell Parker Library · part of Albemarle Regional Library

Murfreesboro’s library is a branch of Albemarle Regional Library, which lends less per resident than 92% of systems its size

Murfreesboro’s library is the Elizabeth Sewell Parker Library, a branch of Albemarle Regional Library, which serves 62,428 people and lent 61K items last year.

213 E Main St., Murfreesboro 27855 · about 43 hours a week
D−Civic lifeAhead of 5% of U.S. towns. Nonprofits and volunteering.
Directions (252) 398-4494 What’s a card worth?
Borrowed a year
61K
1 per resident
Visits a year
82K
1.3 per resident · Below typical (2.6)
Programs & events
1,155
about 22 a week · 13K attended
Cardholders
64%
40,014 cards
Open
43 hrs
a week at this branch
In brief

Murfreesboro’s library, in brief

The Albemarle Regional Library system is used less than most libraries its size

The Albemarle Regional Library system records 1.3 visits per resident, against a typical 2.6 for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people. Borrowing is 0.8 print items per resident, against a typical 3.7. It also spends less than most: $21 per resident, against a typical $40. How it compares ↓

North Carolina pays a big share

35% of the budget comes from the state, and 60% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. 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; Murfreesboro’s library is a branch of Albemarle Regional Library, so they cover the whole system (62,428 people), not just the Murfreesboro branch.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Murfreesboro’s civic life grade

On community nonprofits and volunteering, Murfreesboro is ahead of 5% of U.S. towns. Murfreesboro is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Murfreesboro’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.

D−
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Murfreesboro’s overall grade.
–Library visitsServed by a county or regional system, so there is no town figureCCommunity nonprofits2.5 per 1,000 residents · NC towns 3.4 · U.S. 3.7D−Volunteering2.2% of adults 25–44 · NC towns 5.2% · U.S. 7.5%
All U.S. towns we grade (17,556)Ahead of 5%
FewerMore
U.S. towns with similar incomes, $30K–$50K (1,972)Ahead of 10%

Albemarle Regional Library spends $21 per resident, against a typical $40 for libraries its size.

Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($30K–$50K) 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.

How sure. Graded on two inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. Murfreesboro is small (2,242 residents), so a few dozen organizations or visits move its per-resident figures; the volunteering share is a 2022 estimate from Facebook users aged 25–44.

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 →

Places to belong

8 community nonprofits are registered in Murfreesboro

2.5 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.

Community nonprofits, by kind

Arts & culture10.28 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.24
Youth, sports & recreation10.41 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.52
Civic groups, clubs & veterans20.69 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.74
Human services10.28 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.59
Education10.41 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.43
Health00.13 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.16
Environment & animals00.13 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.17

Counted from the IRS list of tax-exempt organizations by mailing address (fractions where a ZIP code spans towns). Congregations are counted apart (3 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.

Volunteering

2.2%

2.2% of Murfreesboro’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 Murfreesboro’s residents live; 2022.

★ What stands out · How it compares

Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 2 of 8 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 1.3 visits · typical 2.6Lower than 82%
Borrowing per resident 0.8 print items · typical 3.7Bottom 10%
Digital borrowing 0.2 e-items · typical 1.2Bottom 10%
Kids’ borrowing 0.3 kids’ items · typical 1.7Bottom 10%
Program attendance 0.2 attendees · typical 0.3Lower than 70%
Programs offered 18.5 per 1,000 residents · typical 14Higher than 64%
Cardholders 64% of residents · typical 39%Higher than 83%
Spending $21 per resident · typical $40Lower than 79%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Albemarle Regional Library serves 62,428 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 4 items go out

Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Albemarle Regional Library system. The library’s own count.

82K
visits
1.3 per resident
61K
loans, print + digital
1 per resident
1,155
programs & events
13K attended
40K
library cards
64% of people served
Every open hour4items borrowed
Every week256people at a program
Every day116Wi-Fi sessions
24 staff (full-time equivalent)95 public computers
What people borrow

Mostly books and media off the shelf

61K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.

61Kloans
Books & media (adults) 49%Kids’ books & media 32%E-books, audio & streaming 19%
From your couch

11,437 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.

Kids & programs

About 6 kids’ programs a week

Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.

Schools in Murfreesboro →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–559
Ages 6–11237
Teens46
Adults201
All ages612
Little ones
1.1

story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.

20K
kids’ books & media borrowed
13K
people at programs
1,155
programs
The building

Find it

Elizabeth Sewell Parker Library, 213 E Main St., Murfreesboro.

Directions(252) 398-4494
43
hours open a week
5,000
square feet
With a card

E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Albemarle Regional Library branch.

New in Murfreesboro? The Handbook →

Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.

What your card is worth

What a library card is worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Murfreesboro cardholder borrows.

In a month I’d use…
Books$17 each
1
Kids’ books$12 each
0
E-books & audio$15 each
0
Movies & music$4 each
0
Programs & classes$10 a program
0
Computer & Wi-Fi$3 a session
0
Your card saves you about
$204
a year at retail prices · $17 a month

Who pays for it
$21 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $1.3M.

Local taxes 60%State 35%Gifts & other 5%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.2M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.3M 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 40,014 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.

  • System-wide. Elizabeth Sewell Parker Library is one branch of Albemarle Regional Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 62,428 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 Murfreesboro

Does Murfreesboro have a public library?

Yes: Elizabeth Sewell Parker Library, 213 E Main St., is a branch of Albemarle Regional Library, which serves 62,428 people. The branch is open about 43 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Albemarle Regional 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 Murfreesboro’s library?

It logged 1.3 visits and lent 1.0 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.

What is Murfreesboro’s civic life grade?

D− Murfreesboro is ahead of 5% 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 Murfreesboro.

Town Square →
Start a conversation

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.