Photo: Nyttend · Public domainJackson Center’s library is a branch of Shelby County Libraries - Amos Memorial, which lends less per resident than 64% of systems its size
Jackson Center’s library is the Jackson Center Memorial Branch Library, a branch of Shelby County Libraries - Amos Memorial, which serves 48,230 people and lent 202K items last year.
Jackson Center’s library, in brief
Ohio pays a big share
94% of the budget comes from the state, and 0% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
More library cards than residents
51,698 cards for 48,230 people. Cards held by people from outside the service area count too, so the total can pass the population. At the typical library serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, it’s 39%. How it compares ↓
Most programs are for young children
69% of the 645 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 3.7 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; Jackson Center’s library is a branch of Shelby County Libraries - Amos Memorial, so they cover the whole system (48,230 people), not just the Jackson Center branch.
What’s behind Jackson Center’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Jackson Center is ahead of 91% of U.S. towns. Jackson Center is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Jackson Center’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 →
13 community nonprofits are registered in Jackson Center
9.7 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
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 (3 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
8.8%
8.8% of Jackson Center’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 Jackson Center’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 4 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Shelby County Libraries - Amos Memorial serves 48,230 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 22 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Shelby County Libraries - Amos Memorial system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
202K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
74,118 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 9 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.
Find it
Jackson Center Memorial Branch Library, 205 S. Linden, Jackson Center.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Shelby County Libraries - Amos Memorial branch.
New in Jackson Center? 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 $1.63 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Jackson Center cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $2M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $3.3M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $2M 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 51,698 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Jackson Center Memorial Branch Library is one branch of Shelby County Libraries - Amos Memorial, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 48,230 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 Jackson Center
Does Jackson Center have a public library?
Yes: Jackson Center Memorial Branch Library, 205 S. Linden, is a branch of Shelby County Libraries - Amos Memorial, which serves 48,230 people. The branch is open about 24 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Shelby County Libraries - Amos Memorial 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 Jackson Center’s library?
It logged 3.6 visits and lent 4.2 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Jackson Center’s civic life grade?
A Jackson Center is ahead of 91% 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 Jackson Center.
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.