Photo: Nicolas Henderson from Coppell, Texas · CC BY 2.0Blessing’s library is a branch of Palacios Library Inc, which lends less per resident than 94% of systems its size
Blessing’s library is the Blessing Library, a branch of Palacios Library Inc, which serves 7,250 people and lent 4,943 items last year.
The short version on Blessing’s library
Gifts and endowments pay a real share
36% of the system’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 64%. What your card is worth ↓
Open only about 19 hours a week
The Blessing branch keeps short hours: about 19 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Most programs are for young children
66% of the 430 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 1.7 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; Blessing’s library is a branch of Palacios Library Inc, so they cover the whole system (7,250 people), not just the Blessing branch.
What’s behind Blessing’s civic life grade
Blessing 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 →
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Palacios Library Inc serves 7,250 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 2 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Palacios Library Inc system. The library’s own count.
Not reported for 2024: visits. The survey fills a missing figure with its own estimate; we leave estimates out rather than show them as the library’s count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
4,943 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
142 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 5 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
Blessing Library, 124 9th St., Blessing.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Palacios Library Inc branch.
New in Blessing? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Blessing cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $154K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $112K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $154K 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 3,537 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Not reported for 2024: visits. Palacios Library Inc didn’t report visits; the survey’s estimate is its own, so we leave it out and never rank it.
- System-wide. Blessing Library is one branch of Palacios Library Inc, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 7,250 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 Blessing
Does Blessing have a public library?
Yes: Blessing Library, 124 9th St., is a branch of Palacios Library Inc, which serves 7,250 people. The branch is open about 19 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Palacios Library Inc 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 Blessing’s library?
It lent 0.7 items per resident in 2024 (print and digital) and ran 430 programs that drew 3,798 people. Visits weren’t reported for 2024.
What is Blessing’s civic life grade?
Blessing 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 Blessing.
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.