Photo: EncMstr · CC BY-SA 4.0Dayton’s library runs 0.7 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Mary Gilkey Public Library serves Dayton’s 2,704 residents. Last year it lent 8,530 print books and media and drew 326 people to its programs.
What stands out about Dayton’s library
Read from the library’s own yearly report. The page puts what stands out first.
What’s behind Dayton’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Dayton is ahead of 85% of U.S. towns, #35 of 106 in Oregon. Its library’s 2024 visits weren’t reported, so Dayton is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Dayton’s count of community nonprofits ranks highest.
The survey’s stand-in for Dayton’s 2024 visits carries forward a 2020 figure, so it is left out.
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 →
23 community nonprofits are registered in Dayton
8.6 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 (4 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
8.0%
8.0% of Dayton’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.9% in the typical Oregon 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 Dayton’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Mary Gilkey Public Library serves 2,704 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 6 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Not reported for 2024: visits. The survey fills a missing figure with its own estimate; we leave estimates out rather than show them as the library’s count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
8,530 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 10K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.8 time last year, on average.
2 programs a year
Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in Dayton last year.
Find it
Mary Gilkey Public Library, 416 Ferry St., Dayton.
No late fees. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Dayton? 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 $1.11 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Dayton cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $113K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $125K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $113K 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 880 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Not reported for 2024: visits. Mary Gilkey Public Library didn’t report visits; the survey’s estimate carries forward its 2020 figure, so we leave it out and never rank it.
- Digital loans not reported. The library didn’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
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 Dayton
Does Dayton have a public library?
Yes. Mary Gilkey Public Library, 416 Ferry St., serves Dayton’s 2,704 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 29 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Mary Gilkey Public Library fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Dayton’s library?
It lent 3.2 items per resident in 2024 (print) and ran 2 programs that drew 326 people. Visits weren’t reported for 2024.
What is Dayton’s civic life grade?
A− Dayton is ahead of 85% of U.S. towns on civic life, #35 of 106 in Oregon. 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 Dayton.
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.