Photo: Nyttend · Public domainWalbridge’s library is a branch of Wood County District Public Library, which lends more per resident than 80% of systems its size
Walbridge’s library is the Walbridge Branch Library, a branch of Wood County District Public Library, which serves 60,312 people and lent 604K items last year.
The short version on Walbridge’s library
Ohio pays a big share
53% of the budget comes from the state, and 30% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
Above typical on nearly every measure
Against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, the Wood County District Public Library system is above the middle on six of the seven per-resident measures we compare, and close to it on the other, with three in the top 30%. No single number stands out, and none lags far behind. How it compares ↓
Most programs are for young children
69% of the 1,160 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; Walbridge’s library is a branch of Wood County District Public Library, so they cover the whole system (60,312 people), not just the Walbridge branch.
What’s behind Walbridge’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Walbridge is ahead of 48% of U.S. towns, #562 of 914 in Ohio. Walbridge is graded on two of the three inputs. The share of younger adults in volunteering groups holds the grade up; Walbridge’s count of community nonprofits pulls it down.
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 →
11 community nonprofits are registered in Walbridge
3.6 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 (5 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
7.7%
7.7% of Walbridge’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 Walbridge’s residents live; 2022.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
604K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
156,943 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 7 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Wood County District Public Library serves 60,312 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 77 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Wood County District Public Library system. The library’s own count.
About 15 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
Walbridge Branch Library, 108 N Main St., Walbridge.
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 Wood County District Public Library branch.
New in Walbridge? 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 $3.21 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Walbridge cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $3.1M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $10M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $3.1M 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 23,867 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walbridge | Walbridge Branch Library fine-free | — | 54 | B− |
| Lake Township | Walbridge Branch Library fine-free | — | 54 | C |
| Northwood | None of its own | — | — | C+ |
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. Walbridge Branch Library is one branch of Wood County District Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 60,312 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 Walbridge
Does Walbridge have a public library?
Yes: Walbridge Branch Library, 108 N Main St., is a branch of Wood County District Public Library, which serves 60,312 people. The branch is open about 54 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Wood County District Public 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 Walbridge’s library?
It logged 2.5 visits and lent 10.0 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Walbridge’s civic life grade?
B− Walbridge is ahead of 48% of U.S. towns on civic life, #562 of 914 in Ohio. 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 Walbridge.
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.