Photo: Smallbones · Public domainWest Whiteland Township’s library lends 10 print items per resident, against a typical 3.2 for libraries its size
Chester County Library serves 111,774 people in and around West Whiteland Township. Last year it lent 1.7M books, movies and e-books and logged 419K visits.
What West Whiteland Township’s library is like
One of the busiest library systems its size
Chester County Library logs 3.8 visits per resident, against a typical 2.1 for libraries serving 100,000+ people, and lends 10 print items per resident against a typical 3.2. On both counts it beats 88% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Big on e-books and audiobooks
Digital borrowing runs 4.4 e-items per resident, against a typical 1.4, higher than at 93% of similar-size libraries. It’s 30% of all loans. What people borrow ↓
Kids’ borrowing is a standout
Children’s books and media are 48% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 91% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
Twice the programs of a typical library its size
Chester County Library ran 2,373 programs last year, about 46 a week. That’s 21 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 9. Kids & programs ↓
Most programs are for young children
71% of the 2,373 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 29 a week for ages 0–5. 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; Chester County Library serves 111,774 people in and around West Whiteland Township, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind West Whiteland Township’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, West Whiteland Township is ahead of 68% of U.S. towns, #157 of 1,029 in Pennsylvania. West Whiteland Township is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; West Whiteland Township’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 →
90 community nonprofits are registered in West Whiteland Township
4.5 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: education.
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 (12 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 2 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
8.3%
8.3% of West Whiteland Township’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 West Whiteland Township’s residents live; 2022.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
1.7M loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
497,318 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 100,000+ people across the U.S.
Chester County Library serves 111,774 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 100,000+.
Every hour the doors are open, about 264 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Chester County Library system. The library’s own count.
About 32 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
Chester County Library, 450 Exton Square Parkway, Exton.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Chester County Library branch.
New in West Whiteland 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 $2.88 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average West Whiteland Township cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $36. Operating budget $8.7M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $25M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $8.7M 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 61,913 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Whiteland Township | Chester County Library | — | 62 | B+ |
| Exton | Chester County Library | — | 62 | — graded as part of its town |
| Uwchlan Township | None of its own | — | — | A− |
| East Whiteland Township | None of its own | — | — | B |
| Lionville | None of its own | — | — | — graded as part of its town |
| West Goshen Township | None of its own | — | — | B− |
| East Bradford Township | None of its own | — | — | C+ |
| East Caln 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. Chester County Library serves 111,774 people in and around West Whiteland Township, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just West Whiteland Township.
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 West Whiteland Township
Does West Whiteland Township have a public library?
Yes. Chester County Library, 450 Exton Square Parkway, serves 111,774 people in and around West Whiteland Township (the survey’s count) and is open about 62 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Chester County 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 West Whiteland Township’s library?
It logged 3.8 visits and lent 14.8 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.1 visits for libraries serving 100,000+ people.
What is West Whiteland Township’s civic life grade?
B+ West Whiteland Township is ahead of 68% of U.S. towns on civic life, #157 of 1,029 in Pennsylvania. 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 West Whiteland 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.