Photo: Derek Jensen (Tysto) · Public domainKelleys Island’s library is a branch of Sandusky Library, which lends more per resident than 68% of systems its size
Kelleys Island’s library is the Kelleys Island Branch, a branch of Sandusky Library, which serves 44,878 people and lent 435K items last year.
Kelleys Island’s library, in brief
Open only about 10 hours a week
The Kelleys Island branch keeps short hours: about 10 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Ohio pays a big share
48% of the budget comes from the state, and 38% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
41% of borrowing happens on a screen
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 41% of loans, more per resident than at 94% of similar-size libraries. Print still makes up 59%. What people borrow ↓
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; Kelleys Island’s library is a branch of Sandusky Library, so they cover the whole system (44,878 people), not just the Kelleys Island branch.
What’s behind Kelleys Island’s civic life grade
Kelleys Island 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 →
41% of borrowing is digital
435K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
179,449 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 6 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Sandusky Library serves 44,878 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 125 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Sandusky Library system. The library’s own count.
About 11 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
Kelleys Island Branch, 528 Division St., Kelleys Island.
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 Sandusky Library branch.
New in Kelleys Island? 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 $2.10 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Kelleys Island cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $3.3M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $7M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $3.3M 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 18,263 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Kelleys Island Branch is one branch of Sandusky Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 44,878 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 Kelleys Island
Does Kelleys Island have a public library?
Yes: Kelleys Island Branch, 528 Division St., is a branch of Sandusky Library, which serves 44,878 people. The branch is open about 10 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Sandusky 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 Kelleys Island’s library?
It logged 2.5 visits and lent 9.7 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Kelleys Island’s civic life grade?
Kelleys Island 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 Kelleys Island.
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.