Photo: Nyttend · Public domainSummerville’s library is a branch of Rebecca M Arthurs Memorial Library, which lends less per resident than 87% of systems its size
Summerville’s library is the Summerville Public Library, a branch of Rebecca M Arthurs Memorial Library, which serves 13,036 people and lent 20K items last year.
Summerville’s library, in brief
The Rebecca M Arthurs Memorial Library system is used less than most libraries its size
The Rebecca M Arthurs Memorial Library system records 1.2 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people. Borrowing is 1.3 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9. It also spends less than most: $22 per resident, against a typical $43. How it compares ↓
Mostly paid for by gifts, not taxes
55% of the system’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 13%. What your card is worth ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 14% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 40% for its size. How it compares ↓
Programs lean toward adults
51% of the 318 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 125 were for children. 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; Summerville’s library is a branch of Rebecca M Arthurs Memorial Library, so they cover the whole system (13,036 people), not just the Summerville branch.
What’s behind Summerville’s civic life grade
Summerville 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 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Rebecca M Arthurs Memorial Library serves 13,036 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 5 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Rebecca M Arthurs Memorial Library system. The library’s own count.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
20K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
3,669 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 2 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
Summerville Public Library, 114 Second Avenue, Summerville.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Rebecca M Arthurs Memorial Library branch.
New in Summerville? 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 $1.31 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Summerville cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $284K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $373K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $284K 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 1,800 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Summerville Public Library is one branch of Rebecca M Arthurs Memorial Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 13,036 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 Summerville
Does Summerville have a public library?
Yes: Summerville Public Library, 114 Second Avenue, is a branch of Rebecca M Arthurs Memorial Library, which serves 13,036 people. The branch is open about 29 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Rebecca M Arthurs Memorial 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 Summerville’s library?
It logged 1.2 visits and lent 1.5 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Summerville’s civic life grade?
Summerville 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 Summerville.
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.