Rowland Depot · Photo: Ammodramus · CC0Rowland’s library is a branch of Robeson County Public Library, which lends less per resident than 95% of systems its size
Rowland’s library is the Rowland Public Library, a branch of Robeson County Public Library, which serves 116,438 people and lent 103K items last year.
The short version on Rowland’s library
The Robeson County Public Library system is used less than most libraries its size
The Robeson County Public Library system records 0.6 visits per resident, against a typical 2.1 for libraries serving 100,000+ people. Borrowing is 0.7 print items per resident, against a typical 3.2. It also spends less than most: $13 per resident, against a typical $36. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
The Robeson County Public Library system offered 270 programs last year, 2.3 per 1,000 residents against a typical 9. Kids & programs ↓
Open only about 20 hours a week
The Rowland branch keeps short hours: about 20 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 8% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 41% for its size. How it compares ↓
Runs on less money than most
The Robeson County Public Library system spends $13 per resident, less than 94% of similar-size libraries (typical: $36). 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; Rowland’s library is a branch of Robeson County Public Library, so they cover the whole system (116,438 people), not just the Rowland branch.
What’s behind Rowland’s civic life grade
Rowland 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 100,000+ people across the U.S.
Robeson County Public Library serves 116,438 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 100,000+.
Every hour the doors are open, about 9 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Robeson County Public Library system. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
103K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
17,270 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 3 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
Rowland Public Library, 113 E Main St., Rowland.
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 Robeson County Public Library branch.
New in Rowland? 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 $1.08 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Rowland cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $36. Operating budget $1.5M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.6M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.5M 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 8,754 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Rowland Public Library is one branch of Robeson County Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 116,438 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 Rowland
Does Rowland have a public library?
Yes: Rowland Public Library, 113 E Main St., is a branch of Robeson County Public Library, which serves 116,438 people. The branch is open about 20 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Robeson 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 Rowland’s library?
It logged 0.6 visits and lent 0.9 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.1 visits for libraries serving 100,000+ people.
What is Rowland’s civic life grade?
Rowland 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 Rowland.
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.