Photo: NewMexConnorMcDavidFan · CC BY-SA 4.0Columbus’ library logs 11 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries its size
Columbus Village Library serves Columbus’s 1,442 residents. Last year it lent 3,671 books, movies and e-books and logged 16K visits.
Columbus’s library, in brief
More of a place to be than a place to borrow
Visits per resident beat 92% of similar-size libraries, while borrowing beats only 25%. The building also logs about 65 Wi-Fi sessions a day. A year at the library ↓
A place to get online
Columbus Village Library logs about 65 Wi-Fi sessions a day and has 9 public computers. That’s 16 sessions per resident a year. A year at the library ↓
Programs lean toward adults
72% of the 72 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 17 were for children. Kids & programs ↓
Columbus invests in its library
Columbus Village Library spends $125 per resident a year, about twice the typical $54 for a library its size. Almost all of it (88%) 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; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Columbus’ civic life grade
On library visits and community nonprofits, Columbus is among the top 1% of U.S. towns. Columbus is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs put Columbus near the top nationally; library visits rank highest.
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 →
10 community nonprofits are registered in Columbus
8.4 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 (2 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 1 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
Every hour the doors are open, about 2 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 2 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Columbus Village Library serves 1,442 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
3,671 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 11K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.3 time last year, on average.
708 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
72 programs a year
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 Columbus last year.
Find it
Columbus Village Library, 43 West Broadway, Columbus.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Columbus? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Columbus cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $180K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $136K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $180K 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 479 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbus | Columbus Village Library | 2.5 | 46 | A+ |
| City of the Sun | 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 Columbus
Does Columbus have a public library?
Yes. Columbus Village Library, 43 West Broadway, serves Columbus’ 1,442 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 46 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Columbus Village 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 Columbus’ library?
It logged 10.9 visits and lent 2.5 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Columbus’ civic life grade?
A+ Columbus is among the top 1% 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 Columbus.
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.