Photo: Nyttend · Public domainWayne Township’s library lends 8.8 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size
Mary L. Cook Public Library serves 24,280 people in and around Wayne Township from 2 locations. Last year it lent 248K books, movies and e-books and logged 32K visits.
The short version on Wayne Township’s library
Ohio pays a big share
64% of the budget comes from the state, and 29% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
People borrow more than they stay
Borrowing per resident is higher than at 86% of similar-size libraries, but visits are lower than at 83%. People come in, pick up their books and go. How it compares ↓
Most programs are for young children
70% of the 375 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 2.9 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; Mary L. Cook Public Library serves 24,280 people in and around Wayne Township, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Wayne Township’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Wayne Township is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns, #153 of 914 in Ohio. Wayne Township is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups 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 →
44 community nonprofits are registered in Wayne Township
4.9 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 (9 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
9.9%
9.9% of Wayne Township’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 Wayne Township’s residents live; 2022.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
248K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
34,884 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 5 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Mary L. Cook Public Library serves 24,280 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 56 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Mary L. Cook Public Library system. The library’s own count.
About 5 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.
2 places to borrow in Wayne Township
Mary L. Cook Public Library, 381 Old Stage Rd., Waynesville.
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 Mary L. Cook Public Library branch.
New in Wayne Township? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Other Mary L. Cook Public Library branches in Wayne Township
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $3.69 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Wayne Township cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1.1M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $4.1M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.1M 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 9,140 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne Township | Mary L. Cook Public Library fine-free | — | 52 | A− |
| Clear Creek Township | Springboro Branch fine-free | — | 64 | B |
| Massie Township | None of its own | — | — | B |
| Turtlecreek Township | None of its own | — | — | C− |
| Spring Valley Township | None of its own | — | — | B+ |
| Washington Township | None of its own | — | — | C− |
| Chester Township | None of its own | — | — | D |
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. Mary L. Cook Public Library serves 24,280 people in and around Wayne Township, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Wayne Township.
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 Wayne Township
Does Wayne Township have a public library?
Yes. Mary L. Cook Public Library, 381 Old Stage Rd., serves 24,280 people in and around Wayne Township (the survey’s count) and is open about 52 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Mary L. Cook 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 Wayne Township’s library?
It logged 1.3 visits and lent 10.2 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Wayne Township’s civic life grade?
A− Wayne Township is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns on civic life, #153 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 Wayne Township.
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.