Ashland Township’s library logs 17 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size
Ashland Public Library serves 3,367 people in and around Ashland Township. Last year it lent 46K books, movies and e-books and logged 57K visits.
Ashland Township’s library, in brief
Ashland Township uses its library more than almost any town its size
Ashland Public Library logs 17 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, and lends 11 print items per resident against a typical 3.8. On both counts it beats 93% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 80% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 98% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
Four times the programs of a typical library its size
Ashland Public Library ran 507 programs last year, about 10 a week. That’s 151 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34. People show up: 8,582 attended. Kids & programs ↓
The library is a National Register landmark
Ashland Public Library has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1983. Today’s library there has 14,315 square feet. The building ↓
A place to get online
Ashland Public Library logs about 53 Wi-Fi sessions a day and has 16 public computers. That’s 5.7 sessions per resident a year. A year at the library ↓
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.
What’s behind Ashland Township’s civic life grade
Ashland Township 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 →
Every hour the doors are open, about 19 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Ashland Public Library serves 3,367 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
46K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 18K books and other items on the shelves went out about 2.1 times last year, on average.
9,103 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 4 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
A National Register landmark since 1983
Ashland Public Library, 1324 Silver Street, Ashland.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Ashland Township? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Ashland Public Library
Ashland Public Library was added to the National Register of Historic Places on Jan 27, 1983. It is significant for its education and architecture at the state level. Its architecture is described as Jacobethan Revival Style.
The Ashland Public Library is a historic building in Ashland, Nebraska. It was built by W.R. Shankland as a Carnegie library in 1911. Besides the $5,500 donation from Andrew Carnegie, its construction had much to do with the Wiggenhorn family: the land was donated by Mr and Mrs Wiggenhorn Jr., and the roof was donated by H. A. Wiggenhorn.
More about the building →For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $2.83 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Ashland Township cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $270K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $765K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $270K 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 2,405 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Who has a library of their own, and how much each town borrows. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ashland Township | Ashland Public Library | 13.8 | 46 | — graded with its twin city |
| Clear Creek Township | None of its own | — | — | C+ |
Loans = print + digital items borrowed in the library’s fiscal year, per person it serves. — = no library of its own, a county or regional system (its numbers cover many towns), or no report. Civic life: — = not graded (unincorporated places, whose nonprofits can’t be placed by mailing address, or towns with fewer than two of the three inputs).
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Visits count everyone. Ashland Township’s 56,801 visits include people from nearby towns and summer visitors; the survey has no resident share.
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 Ashland Township
Does Ashland Township have a public library?
Yes. Ashland Public Library, 1324 Silver Street, serves 3,367 people in and around Ashland Township (the survey’s count) and is open about 46 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Ashland 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 Ashland Township’s library?
It logged 16.9 visits and lent 13.8 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Ashland Township’s civic life grade?
Ashland Township 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 Ashland Township.
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. Building history: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places; photo via Wikimedia Commons. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.