Philadelphia’s library logs 1.6 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries its size
Bodman Memorial Library serves 1,975 people in and around Philadelphia. Last year it lent 2,287 print books and media and logged 3,120 visits.
Philadelphia’s library, in brief
Bodman Memorial Library is used less than most libraries its size
Bodman Memorial Library records 1.6 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries serving under 2,500 people. Borrowing is 1.2 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9. It also spends less than most: $33 per resident, against a typical $54. How it compares ↓
A small-town library
Bodman Memorial Library serves 1,975 residents with about one full-time staff, open about 23 hours a week. It’s compared only with libraries serving under 2,500 people, because per-person numbers always look big in a small town. A year at the library ↓
Few programs for a library this size
Bodman Memorial Library offered 21 programs last year, 11 per 1,000 residents against a typical 60. Kids & programs ↓
Bodman Memorial Library serves more than Philadelphia
The library’s service area covers 1,975 people in and around Philadelphia, so its per-resident numbers are measured against that wider population. How it compares ↓
A place to get online
Bodman Memorial Library logs about 185 Wi-Fi sessions a day and has 4 public computers. That’s 34 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; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Philadelphia’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Philadelphia is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns. Philadelphia is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Philadelphia’s count of community nonprofits ranks 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 →
7 community nonprofits are registered in Philadelphia
8.6 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.
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 (1 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
8.2%
8.2% of Philadelphia’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 7.4% in the typical New York 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 Philadelphia’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Bodman Memorial Library serves 1,975 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 2 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
2,287 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 9,368 books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.2 time last year, on average.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
21 programs a year
Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
Find it
Bodman Memorial Library, 8 Aldrich Street, Philadelphia.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Philadelphia? 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 $3.66 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Philadelphia cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $65K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $237K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $65K 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 1,336 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Digital loans not reported. New York libraries often don’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
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 Philadelphia
Does Philadelphia have a public library?
Yes. Bodman Memorial Library, 8 Aldrich Street, serves 1,975 people in and around Philadelphia (the survey’s count) and is open about 23 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Bodman 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 Philadelphia’s library?
It logged 1.6 visits and lent 1.2 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Philadelphia’s civic life grade?
A Philadelphia is ahead of 86% 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 Philadelphia.
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.