Photo: Nyttend · Public domainNew Washington’s library is a branch of Crestline Public Library, which lends more per resident than 72% of systems its size
New Washington’s library is the New Washington Branch Library, a branch of Crestline Public Library, which serves 8,318 people and lent 54K items last year.
The short version on New Washington’s library
Ohio pays a big share
85% 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
9,741 cards for 8,318 people. Cards held by people from outside the service area count too, so the total can pass the population. At the typical library serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, it’s 42%. How it compares ↓
Programs are almost all for children
87% of the 410 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 1.1 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; New Washington’s library is a branch of Crestline Public Library, so they cover the whole system (8,318 people), not just the New Washington branch.
What’s behind New Washington’s civic life grade
New Washington 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 →
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 5 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Crestline Public Library serves 8,318 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 12 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Crestline Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
54K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
5,216 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 7 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
New Washington Branch Library, 106 W. Mansfield St., New Washington.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Crestline Public Library branch.
New in New Washington? 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 $1.72 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average New Washington cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $550K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $945K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $550K 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 9,741 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. New Washington Branch Library is one branch of Crestline Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 8,318 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 New Washington
Does New Washington have a public library?
Yes: New Washington Branch Library, 106 W. Mansfield St., is a branch of Crestline Public Library, which serves 8,318 people. The branch is open about 27 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Crestline 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 New Washington’s library?
It logged 2.7 visits and lent 6.5 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is New Washington’s civic life grade?
New Washington 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 New Washington.
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.