Photo: Ichabod · CC BY-SA 3.0Henderson’s library runs 2.7 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24 for libraries its size
Chester County Library serves 17,606 people in and around Henderson. Last year it lent 45K books, movies and e-books and logged 32K visits.
Henderson’s library, in brief
Few programs for a library this size
Chester County Library offered 47 programs last year, 2.7 per 1,000 residents against a typical 24. Kids & programs ↓
Most of the library’s borrowing is digital
E-books, e-audiobooks and streaming make up 56% of loans, more per resident than at 61% of similar-size libraries. Print still makes up 44%, much of it kids’ books. What people borrow ↓
Runs on less money than most
Chester County Library spends $7 per resident, less than 98% of similar-size libraries (typical: $43). What your card is worth ↓
People visit, but borrow less than most
Chester County Library lends 1.1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people, fewer than 89% of similar-size libraries, though visits are closer to typical. What people borrow ↓
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 17,606 people in and around Henderson, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Henderson’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Henderson is ahead of 10% of U.S. towns, #129 of 150 in Tennessee. Henderson is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Henderson’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Chester County Library spends $7 per resident, against a typical $43 for libraries its size.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($34K–$57K) score higher, so income alone doesn’t account for it.
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 →
16 community nonprofits are registered in Henderson
2.5 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 (4 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
5.1%
5.1% of Henderson’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 6.7% in the typical Tennessee 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 Henderson’s residents live; 2022.
56% of borrowing is digital
45K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
25,432 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 1 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Chester County Library serves 17,606 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 21 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Chester County Library system. The library’s own count.
47 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
Chester County Library, 1012 East Main, Henderson.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Chester County Library branch.
New in Henderson? 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 $5.51 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Henderson cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $131K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $723K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $131K 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 4,469 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Chester County Library serves 17,606 people in and around Henderson, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Henderson.
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 Henderson
Does Henderson have a public library?
Yes. Chester County Library, 1012 East Main, serves 17,606 people in and around Henderson (the survey’s count) and is open about 45 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Chester County 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 Henderson’s library?
It logged 1.8 visits and lent 2.6 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Henderson’s civic life grade?
D Henderson is ahead of 10% of U.S. towns on civic life, #129 of 150 in Tennessee. 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 Henderson.
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.