Photo: Nyttend · Public domainHamler’s library is a branch of Patrick Henry School District Public Library, which lends more per resident than 85% of systems its size
Hamler’s library is the Hamler Branch Library, a branch of Patrick Henry School District Public Library, which serves 5,178 people and lent 51K items last year.
What Hamler’s library is like
Ohio pays a big share
78% of the budget comes from the state, and 16% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
Kids’ borrowing is a standout
Children’s books and media are 54% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 88% of similar-size libraries. 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; Hamler’s library is a branch of Patrick Henry School District Public Library, so they cover the whole system (5,178 people), not just the Hamler branch.
What’s behind Hamler’s civic life grade
Hamler 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 2 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 6 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Patrick Henry School District Public Library serves 5,178 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 11 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Patrick Henry School District Public Library system. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
51K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
9,223 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Hamler Branch Library, 162 South Marion, Hamler.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Patrick Henry School District Public Library branch.
New in Hamler? 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 $2.56 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Hamler cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $299K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $768K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $299K 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 2,280 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Hamler Branch Library is one branch of Patrick Henry School District Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 5,178 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 Hamler
Does Hamler have a public library?
Yes: Hamler Branch Library, 162 South Marion, is a branch of Patrick Henry School District Public Library, which serves 5,178 people. The branch is open about 35 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Patrick Henry School District Public 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 Hamler’s library?
It logged 2.8 visits and lent 9.9 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Hamler’s civic life grade?
Hamler 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 Hamler.
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.