Sykesville’s library logs 0.5 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size
Sykesville Public Library serves 3,055 people in and around Sykesville. Last year it lent 2,574 books, movies and e-books and logged 1,612 visits.
Sykesville’s library, in brief
Sykesville Public Library is used less than most libraries its size
Sykesville Public Library records 0.5 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people. Borrowing is 0.7 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8. It also spends less than most: $18 per resident, against a typical $43. How it compares ↓
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 18%. What your card is worth ↓
Few programs for a library this size
Sykesville Public Library offered 30 programs last year, 9.8 per 1,000 residents against a typical 34. 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; Sykesville Public Library serves 3,055 people in and around Sykesville, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Sykesville’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Sykesville is ahead of 73% of U.S. towns. Sykesville is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Sykesville’s count of community nonprofits ranks highest.
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 →
5 community nonprofits are registered in Sykesville
5.6 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 (0 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
7.8%
7.8% of Sykesville’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 Sykesville’s residents live; 2022.
Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Sykesville Public Library serves 3,055 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 1 item goes out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Sykesville Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
2,574 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
355 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
30 programs a year
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
Sykesville Public Library, 21 East Main St., Sykesville.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Sykesville Public Library branch.
New in Sykesville? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Sykesville cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $56K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $45K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $56K 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 167 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sykesville | Sykesville Public Library fine-free | — | 41 | B+ |
| Winslow Township | None of its own | — | — | C |
| Henderson 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.
- System-wide. Sykesville Public Library serves 3,055 people in and around Sykesville, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Sykesville.
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 Sykesville
Does Sykesville have a public library?
Yes. Sykesville Public Library, 21 East Main St., serves 3,055 people in and around Sykesville (the survey’s count) and is open about 41 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Sykesville Public 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 Sykesville’s library?
It logged 0.5 visits and lent 0.8 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Sykesville’s civic life grade?
B+ Sykesville is ahead of 73% 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 Sykesville.
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.