York Public Library · Photo: Ammodramus · Public domainYork’s library lends 8.1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8 for libraries its size
Kilgore Memorial Library serves York’s 8,180 residents. Last year it lent 93K books, movies and e-books and logged 40K visits.
York’s library, in brief
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 64% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 92% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 22 items per child in York last year. Kids & programs ↓
Most programs are for young children
78% of the 180 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 1.8 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
The library is a National Register landmark
York Public Library has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1990. Today’s library there has 15,837 square feet. The building ↓
Big on e-books and audiobooks
Digital borrowing runs 3.3 e-items per resident, against a typical 1, higher than at 91% of similar-size libraries. It’s 29% of all loans. What people borrow ↓
York invests in its library
Kilgore Memorial Library spends $89 per resident a year, about twice the typical $43 for a library its size. Almost all of it (98%) comes from local taxes. 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.
What’s behind York’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, York is ahead of 72% of U.S. towns, #29 of 55 in Nebraska. York’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 →
63 community nonprofits are registered in York
7.7 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 (13 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
6.4%
6.4% of York’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 York’s residents live; 2022.
About 3 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 York last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Kilgore Memorial Library serves 8,180 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 36 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
93K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 56K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.2 time last year, on average.
27,194 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
A National Register landmark since 1990
Kilgore Memorial Library, 520 Nebraska Avenue, York.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in York? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
York Public Library
York Public Library was added to the National Register of Historic Places on Dec 4, 1990. It is significant for its architecture at the local level. Its architecture is described as Romanesque.
Kilgore Memorial Library is a public library in York, Nebraska, United States. The library was established in 1986 following four years of development. The library replaced the former York Public Library, which was built from 1901 to 1902 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in December 1990.
More about the building →For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.91 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average York cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $728K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.4M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $728K 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 4,766 cardholders ÷ 12.
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 York
Does York have a public library?
Yes. Kilgore Memorial Library, 520 Nebraska Avenue, serves York’s 8,180 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 50 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Kilgore Memorial 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 York’s library?
It logged 4.9 visits and lent 11.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is York’s civic life grade?
B+ York is ahead of 72% of U.S. towns on civic life, #29 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 York.
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.