Photo: Ron Shawley · CC BY 3.0Washington Township’s library runs 367 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
Lilly Washington Public Library serves Washington Township’s 879 residents. Last year it lent 8,647 books, movies and e-books and logged 8,723 visits.
Washington Township’s library, in brief
Six times the programs of a typical library its size
Lilly Washington Public Library ran 323 programs last year, about 6 a week. That’s 367 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60. Kids & programs ↓
Gifts and endowments pay a real share
49% of the library’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 29%. What your card is worth ↓
A small-town library
Lilly Washington Public Library serves 879 residents with about one full-time staff, open about 41 hours a week. It’s compared only with libraries serving under 2,500 people, because per-person numbers always look big in a small town. A year at the library ↓
43% of borrowing happens on a screen
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 43% of loans, more per resident than at 93% of similar-size libraries. Print still makes up 57%, much of it kids’ books. What people borrow ↓
People come to Lilly Washington Public Library a lot
Lilly Washington Public Library logs 9.9 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries serving under 2,500 people, more than 90% of similar-size libraries. Borrowing is above typical too, at 5.6 print items per resident. 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; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Washington Township’s civic life grade
Washington Township 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 →
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 Washington Township last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Lilly Washington Public Library serves 879 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 4 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
43% of borrowing is digital
8,647 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 7,503 books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.7 time last year, on average.
3,716 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Lilly Washington Public Library, 101 Memorial Drive Suite 2, Lilly.
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 Washington Township? 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 $2.94 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Washington Township cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $50K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $148K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $50K 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 384 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington Township | Lilly Washington Public Library fine-free | 9.8 | 41 | — under 1,000 residents |
| Cassandra | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Portage Township | None of its own | — | — | B |
| Cresson Township | None of its own | — | — | C |
| Munster Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Juniata Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
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 Washington Township
Does Washington Township have a public library?
Yes. Lilly Washington Public Library, 101 Memorial Drive Suite 2, serves Washington Township’s 879 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 41 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Lilly Washington 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 Washington Township’s library?
It logged 9.9 visits and lent 9.8 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Washington Township’s civic life grade?
Washington Township 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 Washington Township.
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.