Elwood’s library runs 65 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24 for libraries its size
Elwood Public Library serves 13,548 people in and around Elwood. Last year it lent 76K books, movies and e-books and logged 38K visits.
The short version on Elwood’s library
Most of the library’s borrowing is digital
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 59% of loans, more per resident than at 90% of similar-size libraries. Print still makes up 41%. What people borrow ↓
Twice the programs of a typical library its size
Elwood Public Library ran 887 programs last year, about 17 a week. That’s 65 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24. People show up: 18,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
A well-funded system
Elwood Public Library spends $130 per resident a year, about three times the typical $43 for a library its size. Almost all of it (95%) comes from local taxes. What your card is worth ↓
Programs lean toward adults
64% of the 887 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 161 were for children. Kids & programs ↓
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; Elwood Public Library serves 13,548 people in and around Elwood, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Elwood’s civic life grade
Elwood 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 →
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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 5 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Elwood Public Library serves 13,548 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 24 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Elwood Public Library system. The library’s own count.
59% of borrowing is digital
76K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
44,508 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Elwood Public Library, 1929 Jericho Turnpike, Elwood.
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 Elwood Public Library branch.
New in Elwood? 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 Elwood cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1.8M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.4M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.8M 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 9,977 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elwood | Elwood Public Library fine-free | — | 61 | — graded as part of its town |
| Greenlawn | Harborfields Public Library fine-free | — | 62 | — graded as part of its town |
| Dix Hills | Dix Hills fine-free | — | 65 | — graded as part of its town |
| Commack | Commack Public Library fine-free | — | 67 | — graded as part of its town |
| South Huntington | South Huntington Public Library fine-free | — | 68 | — graded as part of its town |
| Huntington Station | Huntington Public Library-Station Branch fine-free | — | 72 | — graded as part of its town |
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 are a typical-week estimate. Elwood Public Library counted one typical week and multiplied by 52, as the survey allows.
- System-wide. Elwood Public Library serves 13,548 people in and around Elwood, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Elwood.
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 Elwood
Does Elwood have a public library?
Yes. Elwood Public Library, 1929 Jericho Turnpike, serves 13,548 people in and around Elwood (the survey’s count) and is open about 61 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Elwood 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 Elwood’s library?
It logged 2.8 visits and lent 5.6 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Elwood’s civic life grade?
Elwood 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 Elwood.
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.