White Oak’s library is a branch of Carnegie Library of Mckeesport, which lends less per resident than 85% of systems its size
White Oak’s library is the White Oak Branch, a branch of Carnegie Library of Mckeesport, which serves 51,459 people and lent 108K items last year.
White Oak’s library, in brief
The Carnegie Library of Mckeesport system is used less than most libraries its size
The Carnegie Library of Mckeesport system records 0.5 visits per resident, against a typical 2.6 for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people. Borrowing is 1.2 print items per resident, against a typical 3.7. It also spends less than most: $17 per resident, against a typical $40. How it compares ↓
Mostly paid for by gifts, not taxes
51% of the system’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 30%. What your card is worth ↓
Open only about 19 hours a week
The White Oak branch keeps short hours: about 19 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 16% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 39% for its size. How it compares ↓
Programs lean toward adults
78% of the 927 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 170 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; White Oak’s library is a branch of Carnegie Library of Mckeesport, so they cover the whole system (51,459 people), not just the White Oak branch.
What’s behind White Oak’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, White Oak is ahead of 74% of U.S. towns, #107 of 1,029 in Pennsylvania. White Oak is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; White Oak’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 →
42 community nonprofits are registered in White Oak
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 (5 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
7.9%
7.9% of White Oak’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 White Oak’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Carnegie Library of Mckeesport serves 51,459 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 25 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Carnegie Library of Mckeesport system. The library’s own count.
41% of borrowing is digital
108K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
44,756 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 3 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
White Oak Branch, 169 Victoria Drive, White Oak.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Carnegie Library of Mckeesport branch.
New in White Oak? 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 $1.97 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average White Oak cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $871K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.7M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $871K 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 8,195 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Versailles Township | N Versailles Public Library fine-free | 1.6 | 44 | D |
| White Oak | White Oak Branch | — | 19 | B+ |
| McKeesport | Carnegie Library of Mckeesport | — | 47 | C |
| South Versailles Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Greenock | None of its own | — | — | — graded as part of its town |
| Elizabeth Township | None of its own | — | — | C |
| North Huntingdon Township | None of its own | — | — | C |
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. White Oak Branch is one branch of Carnegie Library of Mckeesport, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 51,459 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 White Oak
Does White Oak have a public library?
Yes: White Oak Branch, 169 Victoria Drive, is a branch of Carnegie Library of Mckeesport, which serves 51,459 people. The branch is open about 19 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Carnegie Library of Mckeesport 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 White Oak’s library?
It logged 0.5 visits and lent 2.1 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is White Oak’s civic life grade?
B+ White Oak is ahead of 74% of U.S. towns on civic life, #107 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 White Oak.
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.