West Point City Auditorium · Photo: Ammodramus · Public domainWest Point’s library lends 14 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8 for libraries its size
John A Stahl Library serves West Point’s 3,458 residents. Last year it lent 59K books, movies and e-books and logged 35K visits.
The short version on West Point’s library
West Point ranks 2nd in Nebraska for borrowing
Out of 41 Nebraska towns with a library of their own, West Point comes 2nd for items borrowed per resident. How it compares ↓
West Point uses its library more than almost any town its size
John A Stahl Library logs 10 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, and lends 14 print items per resident against a typical 3.8. On both counts it beats 94% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Three times the programs of a typical library its size
John A Stahl Library ran 374 programs last year, about 7 a week. That’s 108 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34. People show up: 4,175 attended. Kids & programs ↓
Kids borrow more here than almost anywhere
Children’s books and media are 45% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 95% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 27 items per child in West Point last year. Kids & programs ↓
Big on e-books and audiobooks
Digital borrowing runs 2.8 e-items per resident, against a typical 1, higher than at 88% of similar-size libraries. It’s 17% of all loans. What people borrow ↓
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 West Point’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, West Point is ahead of 74% of U.S. towns, #28 of 55 in Nebraska. West Point’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups pulls it down.
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 →
40 community nonprofits are registered in West Point
11.5 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
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 (3 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.
3.5%
3.5% of West Point’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 7.9% in the typical Nebraska 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 West Point’s residents live; 2022.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
59K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 35K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.4 time last year, on average.
9,785 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 all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
John A Stahl Library serves 3,458 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 21 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
About 2 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.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in West Point last year.
Find it
John A. Stahl Library, 330 North Colfax, West Point.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in West Point? 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 $2.58 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average West Point cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $361K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $930K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $361K 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 2,173 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Point | John A. Stahl Library fine-free | 16.9 | 53 | B+ |
| Sherman Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
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.
- The library’s own count. Libraries report their own visits, loans and programs. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.
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 West Point
Does West Point have a public library?
Yes. John A Stahl Library, 330 North Colfax, serves West Point’s 3,458 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 53 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is John A Stahl 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 West Point’s library?
It logged 10.0 visits and lent 16.9 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is West Point’s civic life grade?
B+ West Point is ahead of 74% of U.S. towns on civic life, #28 of 55 in Nebraska. 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 West Point.
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.