Science Building · Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 3.0Weatherford’s library is a branch of Western Plains Library System, which lends less per resident than 76% of systems its size
Weatherford’s library is the Weatherford Public Library, a branch of Western Plains Library System, which serves 46,583 people and lent 157K items last year.
Weatherford’s library, in brief
Few residents carry a card
Only 18% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 39% for its size. How it compares ↓
47% of borrowing happens on a screen
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 47% of loans, more per resident than at 62% of similar-size libraries. Print still makes up 53%, much of it kids’ books. 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; Weatherford’s library is a branch of Western Plains Library System, so they cover the whole system (46,583 people), not just the Weatherford branch.
What’s behind Weatherford’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Weatherford is ahead of 94% of U.S. towns, #8 of 128 in Oklahoma. Weatherford 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 →
73 community nonprofits are registered in Weatherford
6.1 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: education.
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 (18 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 2 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
11.6%
11.6% of Weatherford’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 Weatherford’s residents live; 2022.
47% of borrowing is digital
157K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
73,072 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 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Western Plains Library System serves 46,583 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 9 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Western Plains Library System system. The library’s own count.
About 8 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
Weatherford Public Library, 219 E Franklin, Weatherford.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Western Plains Library System branch.
New in Weatherford? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Weatherford cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $2.9M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $2.6M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $2.9M 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 8,505 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Weatherford Public Library is one branch of Western Plains Library System, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 46,583 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 Weatherford
Does Weatherford have a public library?
Yes: Weatherford Public Library, 219 E Franklin, is a branch of Western Plains Library System, which serves 46,583 people. The branch is open about 60 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Western Plains Library System 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 Weatherford’s library?
It logged 3.6 visits and lent 3.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Weatherford’s civic life grade?
A Weatherford is ahead of 94% of U.S. towns on civic life, #8 of 128 in Oklahoma. 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 Weatherford.
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.