John Roebling House · Photo: Nyttend · Public domainSaxonburg’s library runs 82 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
South Butler Community Library serves Saxonburg’s 7,694 residents. Last year it lent 57K books, movies and e-books and logged 43K visits.
Saxonburg’s library, in brief
Mostly paid for by gifts, not taxes
57% of the library’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 25%. What your card is worth ↓
Busy on a lean budget
South Butler Community Library spends $25 per resident, less than 78% of similar-size libraries (typical: $43). It’s still busier than 77% of them. What your card is worth ↓
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 68% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 87% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 194 items per child in Saxonburg last year. Kids & programs ↓
Programs draw a crowd
12,000 people came to the library’s 628 programs last year: 1.5 per resident, against a typical 0.5, more than at 90% of similar-size libraries. 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.
What’s behind Saxonburg’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Saxonburg is ahead of 79% of U.S. towns. Saxonburg is graded on two of the three inputs. Saxonburg’s count of community nonprofits holds 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 →
11 community nonprofits are registered in Saxonburg
8.9 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 (2 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
7.3%
7.3% of Saxonburg’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 Saxonburg’s residents live; 2022.
About 6 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 Saxonburg last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
South Butler Community Library serves 7,694 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 22 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
57K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 27K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.8 times last year, on average.
8,746 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Saxonburg Area Library, 240 West Main St., Saxonburg.
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 Saxonburg? 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 $4.70 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Saxonburg cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $192K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $901K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $192K 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 5,861 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saxonburg | Saxonburg Area Library fine-free | 7.3 | 50 | A− |
| Jefferson Township | None of its own | — | — | B− |
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 Saxonburg
Does Saxonburg have a public library?
Yes. South Butler Community Library, 240 West Main St., serves Saxonburg’s 7,694 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 50 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is South Butler Community Library 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 Saxonburg’s library?
It logged 5.6 visits and lent 7.3 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Saxonburg’s civic life grade?
A− Saxonburg is ahead of 79% 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 Saxonburg.
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.