Photo: JERRYE & ROY KLOTZ MD · CC BY-SA 3.0Cherokee’s library runs 65 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Cherokee City County Library serves 5,673 people in and around Cherokee. Last year it lent 9,503 books, movies and e-books and logged 10K visits.
Cherokee’s library, in brief
Most programs are for young children
79% of the 369 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 2.8 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 11% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 42% for its size. How it compares ↓
46% of borrowing happens on a screen
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 46% of loans. That’s partly because print borrowing is low: digital loans per resident are below typical too. What people borrow ↓
People visit, but borrow less than most
Cherokee City County Library lends 0.9 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, fewer than 91% of similar-size libraries, though visits are closer to typical. 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; Cherokee City County Library serves 5,673 people in and around Cherokee, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Cherokee’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Cherokee is among the top 1% of U.S. towns. Cherokee is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs put Cherokee near the top nationally; 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 →
12 community nonprofits are registered in Cherokee
8.0 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.
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 (4 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
16.2%
16.2% of Cherokee’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 9.7% in the typical Oklahoma 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 Cherokee’s residents live; 2022.
46% of borrowing is digital
9,503 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
4,350 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 1 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Cherokee City County Library serves 5,673 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 4 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Cherokee City County Library system. The library’s own count.
About 6 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
Cherokee City- County Library, 123 South Grand, Cherokee.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Cherokee City County Library branch.
New in Cherokee? 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 $1.17 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Cherokee cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $135K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $158K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $135K 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 609 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Cherokee City County Library serves 5,673 people in and around Cherokee, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Cherokee.
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 Cherokee
Does Cherokee have a public library?
Yes. Cherokee City County Library, 123 South Grand, serves 5,673 people in and around Cherokee (the survey’s count) and is open about 42 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Cherokee City County 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 Cherokee’s library?
It logged 1.8 visits and lent 1.7 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Cherokee’s civic life grade?
A+ Cherokee is among the top 1% 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 Cherokee.
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.