Photo: Pete Forsyth · CC BY 4.0Oregon City’s library lends 7 print items per resident, against a typical 3.7 for libraries its size
Oregon City Public Library serves Oregon City’s 60,742 residents. Last year it lent 426K print books and media and logged 156K visits.
Oregon City’s library, in brief
The shelves work hard
Each of the 69,000 items on the shelves went out about 6.2 times last year, on average. What people borrow ↓
The library is a National Register landmark
Oregon City Carnegie Library has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 2014. Today’s library there has 21,000 square feet. The building ↓
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.
What’s behind Oregon City’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Oregon City is ahead of 62% of U.S. towns, #72 of 106 in Oregon State. Oregon City 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 →
141 community nonprofits are registered in Oregon City
3.7 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: human services.
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 (22 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 1 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
8.8%
8.8% of Oregon City’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.9% in the typical Oregon State 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 Oregon City’s residents live; 2022.
About 3 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in Oregon City last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Oregon City Public Library serves 60,742 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 147 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
426K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 69K books and other items on the shelves went out about 6.2 times last year, on average.
A National Register landmark since 2014
Oregon City Public Library, 606 John Adams St., Oregon City.
Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Oregon City Carnegie Library
Oregon City Carnegie Library was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 15, 2014. It is significant for its social history, education and architecture at the local level.
The Oregon City Carnegie Library is an historic library building located in Oregon City, Oregon, United States. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2014. The building was completed in 1913 and underwent a major renovation and expansion in 2015.
More about the building →For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $2.06 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Oregon City cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $3M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $6.3M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $3M 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 18,858 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Oregon City ranks 2nd of 3 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Linn | West Linn Public Library | 13.1 | 52 | A− |
| Oregon City | Oregon City Public Library | 7.0 | 56 | B |
| Gladstone | Gladstone Public Library | 5.7 | 56 | B+ |
| Beavercreek | None of its own | — | — | — unincorporated |
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.
- 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 Oregon City
Does Oregon City have a public library?
Yes. Oregon City Public Library, 606 John Adams St., serves Oregon City’s 60,742 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 56 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Oregon City Public Library fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Oregon City’s library?
It logged 2.6 visits and lent 7.0 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Oregon City’s civic life grade?
B Oregon City is ahead of 62% of U.S. towns on civic life, #72 of 106 in Oregon State. 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 Oregon City.
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. Building history: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places; photo via Wikimedia Commons. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.