Photo: Nyttend · Public domainBig Beaver has no public library of its own; the nearest is Chippewa Branch Library in Beaver Falls, 3.5 miles away
Big Beaver doesn’t have a public library of its own. The closest is Chippewa Branch Library in Beaver Falls, 3.5 miles away. Many small-town libraries give cards to neighbors, sometimes for a yearly fee, so call ahead.
C−Civic lifeAhead of 24% of U.S. towns. Nonprofits and volunteering.Libraries for Big Beaver, in brief
Big Beaver borrows from the libraries next door
Big Beaver has no public library of its own, but four libraries are within 10 miles, the closest being Chippewa Branch Library in Beaver Falls (3.5 miles). Many small-town libraries give cards to people from neighboring towns, sometimes for a yearly fee, so call ahead. Nearest libraries ↓
Big Beaver isn’t the only town nearby without one
North Sewickley Township, Koppel and New Beaver don’t have a public library of their own either. Among the towns next door, Chippewa Township (Chippewa Branch Library) and Beaver Falls (Carnegie Free Library of Beaver Falls) do. Libraries next door ↓
The closest isn’t the one open longest
Chippewa Branch Library is nearest, open about 30 hours a week. Ellwood City Area Public Library, 4.5 miles away, is open about 46 hours a week, so it may be easier to fit in. Nearest libraries ↓
This summary is written from the numbers on this page. Distances are straight-line from the town center.
What’s behind Big Beaver’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Big Beaver is ahead of 24% of U.S. towns. Big Beaver is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Big Beaver’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($54K–$90K) score higher, so income alone doesn’t account for it.
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 →
7 community nonprofits are registered in Big Beaver
3.6 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 (2 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
5.5%
5.5% of Big Beaver’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 7.0% in the typical Pennsylvania 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 Big Beaver’s residents live; 2022.
The closest is 3.5 miles away
Closest first, measured from the center of Big Beaver. Each one’s hours, and whether it charges late fines.
Libraries next door
Who has a library of their own, and how much each town borrows. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chippewa Township | Chippewa Branch Library | — | 30 | C− |
| Beaver Falls | Carnegie Free Library of Beaver Falls | — | 35 | C− |
| North Sewickley Township | None of its own | — | — | C |
| Koppel | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| New Beaver | None of its own | — | — | D |
| West Mayfield | None of its own | — | — | D |
| Darlington Township | None of its own | — | — | C+ |
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.
- The library’s own count. Libraries report their own visits, loans and programs. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.
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 Big Beaver
Does Big Beaver have a public library?
No. The closest is Chippewa Branch Library in Beaver Falls, 3.5 miles from the town center. Many libraries give cards to people from neighboring towns, sometimes for a yearly fee, so call ahead.
What is Big Beaver’s civic life grade?
C− Big Beaver is ahead of 24% 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 Big Beaver.
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.