Doland’s library runs 203 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
Doland Community Library serves 953 people in and around Doland. Last year it lent 8,096 books, movies and e-books and logged 6,208 visits.
The short version on Doland’s library
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 86% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 85% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
Most programs are for young children
77% of the 193 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 1.4 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
41% of borrowing happens on a screen
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 41% of loans, more per resident than at 90% of similar-size libraries. Print still makes up 59%, much of it kids’ books. What people borrow ↓
Programs draw a crowd
3,099 people came to the system’s 193 programs last year: 3.3 per resident, against a typical 0.7, more than at 94% of similar-size libraries. 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; Doland Community Library serves 953 people in and around Doland, and its numbers cover all of them; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Doland’s civic life grade
Doland 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 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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Doland Community Library serves 953 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 6 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Doland Community Library system. The library’s own count.
41% of borrowing is digital
8,096 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
3,283 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Doland Community Library, 405 N Humphrey Drive, Doland.
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 Doland Community Library branch.
New in Doland? 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 $2.49 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Doland cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $57K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $141K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $57K 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 287 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Doland | Doland Community Library fine-free | — | 27 | — under 1,000 residents |
| Spring Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Belle Plaine Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Richfield Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Prairie Center 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.
- System-wide. Doland Community Library serves 953 people in and around Doland, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Doland.
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 Doland
Does Doland have a public library?
Yes. Doland Community Library, 405 N Humphrey Drive, serves 953 people in and around Doland (the survey’s count) and is open about 27 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Doland Community 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 Doland’s library?
It logged 6.5 visits and lent 8.5 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Doland’s civic life grade?
Doland 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 Doland.
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.