Photo: Nyttend · Public domainBridgeport’s library is a branch of Belmont County District Library, which lends less per resident than 63% of systems its size
Bridgeport’s library is the Bridgeport Branch, a branch of Belmont County District Library, which serves 33,295 people and lent 114K items last year.
The short version on Bridgeport’s library
Three times the programs of a typical library its size
The Belmont County District Library system ran 1,560 programs last year, about 30 a week. That’s 47 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 14. Kids & programs ↓
Ohio pays a big share
51% of the budget comes from the state, and 39% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
Most programs are for young children
76% of the 1,560 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 15 a week for ages 0–5. 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; Bridgeport’s library is a branch of Belmont County District Library, so they cover the whole system (33,295 people), not just the Bridgeport branch.
What’s behind Bridgeport’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Bridgeport is ahead of 68% of U.S. towns. Bridgeport is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups 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 →
6 community nonprofits are registered in Bridgeport
4.0 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 (2 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
9.0%
9.0% of Bridgeport’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.5% in the typical Ohio 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 Bridgeport’s residents live; 2022.
About 23 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 3 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Belmont County District Library serves 33,295 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 9 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Belmont County District Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
114K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
24,621 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Bridgeport Branch, 661 Main St., Bridgeport.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Belmont County District Library branch.
New in Bridgeport? 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 $1.12 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Bridgeport cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $1.9M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $2.2M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.9M 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 6,614 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bridgeport | Bridgeport Branch fine-free | — | 36 | B+ |
| Pease Township | Martins Ferry Public Library fine-free | — | 60 | B− |
| Wheeling | Ohio County Public Library fine-free | — | 63 | A+ |
| Martins Ferry | Martins Ferry Public Library fine-free | — | 60 | B− |
| Brookside | 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.
- System-wide. Bridgeport Branch is one branch of Belmont County District Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 33,295 people it serves.
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 Bridgeport
Does Bridgeport have a public library?
Yes: Bridgeport Branch, 661 Main St., is a branch of Belmont County District Library, which serves 33,295 people. The branch is open about 36 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Belmont County District 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 Bridgeport’s library?
It logged 2.3 visits and lent 3.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Bridgeport’s civic life grade?
B+ Bridgeport is ahead of 68% 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 Bridgeport.
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.