Photo: Caseyjminnick · CC BY-SA 4.0Silver Lake’s library is a branch of Lake County Library District, which lends less per resident than 67% of systems its size
Silver Lake’s library is the Silver Lake Branch Library, a branch of Lake County Library District, which serves 8,562 people and lent 23K items last year.
Silver Lake’s library, in brief
Open only about 8 hours a week
The Silver Lake branch keeps short hours: about 8 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, the Lake County Library District system sits below the middle on all six per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on five. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
The Lake County Library District system offered 43 programs last year, 5 per 1,000 residents against a typical 34. 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; Silver Lake’s library is a branch of Lake County Library District, so they cover the whole system (8,562 people), not just the Silver Lake branch.
What’s behind Silver Lake’s civic life grade
Silver Lake isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.
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 →
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Lake County Library District serves 8,562 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, for the whole Lake County Library District system. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
23K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
43 programs a year
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
Find it
Silver Lake Branch Library, 65522 Highway 31, Silver Lake.
Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Lake County Library District branch.
New in Silver Lake? 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 $1.07 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Silver Lake cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $447K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $477K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $447K 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 2,179 cardholders ÷ 12.
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.
- System-wide. Silver Lake Branch Library is one branch of Lake County Library District, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 8,562 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 Silver Lake
Does Silver Lake have a public library?
Yes: Silver Lake Branch Library, 65522 Highway 31, is a branch of Lake County Library District, which serves 8,562 people. The branch is open about 8 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Lake County Library District fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Silver Lake’s library?
It logged 1.8 visits and lent 2.7 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Silver Lake’s civic life grade?
Silver Lake isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Silver Lake.
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.