Forest City’s library is a branch of Susquehanna County Historical Society & Free Library, which lends less per resident than 68% of systems its size
Forest City’s library is the Forest City Library, a branch of Susquehanna County Historical Society & Free Library, which serves 38,434 people and lent 104K items last year.
Forest City’s library, in brief
Mostly paid for by gifts, not taxes
50% of the system’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 24%. What your card is worth ↓
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, the Susquehanna County Historical Society & Free Library system sits below the middle on all seven per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on four. How it compares ↓
Most programs are for young children
79% of the 419 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 4.8 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 16% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 39% for its size. 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; Forest City’s library is a branch of Susquehanna County Historical Society & Free Library, so they cover the whole system (38,434 people), not just the Forest City branch.
What’s behind Forest City’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Forest City is ahead of 32% of U.S. towns. Forest City is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Forest City’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($43K–$72K) 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 →
6 community nonprofits are registered in Forest City
3.5 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 (0 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
6.5%
6.5% of Forest City’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 Forest City’s residents live; 2022.
Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Susquehanna County Historical Society & Free Library serves 38,434 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 14 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Susquehanna County Historical Society & Free Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
104K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
12,519 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 6 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
Find it
Forest City Library, 531 Main Street, Forest City.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Susquehanna County Historical Society & Free Library branch.
New in Forest City? 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 $1.64 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Forest City cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $997K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.6M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $997K 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 6,033 cardholders ÷ 12.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forest City | Forest City Library | — | 35 | C |
| Clinton Township | None of its own | — | — | C+ |
| Vandling | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Clifford Township | None of its own | — | — | A− |
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.
- System-wide. Forest City Library is one branch of Susquehanna County Historical Society & Free Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 38,434 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 Forest City
Does Forest City have a public library?
Yes: Forest City Library, 531 Main Street, is a branch of Susquehanna County Historical Society & Free Library, which serves 38,434 people. The branch is open about 35 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Susquehanna County Historical Society & Free Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
It charges late fines on some overdue items, and it lends e-books and audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Forest City’s library?
It logged 1.4 visits and lent 2.7 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Forest City’s civic life grade?
C Forest City is ahead of 32% 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 Forest 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. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.