Castle Shannon’s library logs 9 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size
Community Library of Castle Shannon serves Castle Shannon’s 8,249 residents. Last year it lent 62K books, movies and e-books and logged 74K visits.
The short version on Castle Shannon’s library
Every town next door borrows more
Castle Shannon’s library lends 7.6 items per resident. Each of the four neighboring towns with a library of its own lends more, led by Mount Lebanon at 22. Libraries next door ↓
Top 10% in Pennsylvania for library use
Castle Shannon ranks #7 of 108 Pennsylvania towns with a library of their own for visits per resident. That’s 9 visits per resident, more than at 92% of similar-size libraries nationwide. How it compares ↓
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 Castle Shannon’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Castle Shannon is ahead of 76% of U.S. towns, #92 of 1,029 in Pennsylvania. Library visits hold the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups pulls it down.
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 →
41 community nonprofits are registered in Castle Shannon
5.0 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 (1 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.
6.8%
6.8% of Castle Shannon’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 Castle Shannon’s residents live; 2022.
Every hour the doors are open, about 27 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 6 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Community Library of Castle Shannon serves 8,249 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
62K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 31K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.4 time last year, on average.
20,250 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 4 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 Castle Shannon last year.
Find it
Community Library of Castle Shannon, 3677 Myrtle Ave, Castle Shannon.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Castle Shannon? 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 $3.36 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Castle Shannon cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $313K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.1M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $313K 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 3,138 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Castle Shannon ranks 5th of 5 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Lebanon | Mt Lebanon Public Library fine-free | 22.4 | 66 | — too few inputs |
| Whitehall | Whitehall Public Library fine-free | 11.0 | 50 | C− |
| Bethel Park | Bethel Park Public Library fine-free | 9.9 | 57 | C |
| Pittsburgh | Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh fine-free | 9.6 | 62 | A− |
| Castle Shannon | Community Library of Castle Shannon fine-free | 7.6 | 44 | A− |
| Baldwin 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 Castle Shannon
Does Castle Shannon have a public library?
Yes. Community Library of Castle Shannon, 3677 Myrtle Ave, serves Castle Shannon’s 8,249 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 44 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Community Library of Castle Shannon 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 Castle Shannon’s library?
It logged 9.0 visits and lent 7.6 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Castle Shannon’s civic life grade?
A− Castle Shannon is ahead of 76% of U.S. towns on civic life, #92 of 1,029 in Pennsylvania. 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 Castle Shannon.
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.