Photo: Renelibrary · CC BY-SA 4.0Clifton’s library runs 14 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Nellie Pederson Civic Library serves Clifton’s 3,532 residents. Last year it lent 14K books, movies and e-books and logged 6,777 visits.
The short version on Clifton’s library
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, Nellie Pederson Civic Library sits below the middle on all seven per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on four. How it compares ↓
Programs lean toward adults
75% of the 51 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 5 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.
What’s behind Clifton’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Clifton is ahead of 27% of U.S. towns, #263 of 539 in Texas. Clifton’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups pulls it down.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($48K–$81K) 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 →
20 community nonprofits are registered in Clifton
5.8 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
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 (7 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
3.4%
3.4% of Clifton’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 5.7% in the typical Texas 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 Clifton’s residents live; 2022.
Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Nellie Pederson Civic Library serves 3,532 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 11 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
14K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 12K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.9 time last year, on average.
2,361 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
51 programs a year
Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in Clifton last year.
Find it
Nellie Pederson Civic Library, 406 Live Oak St., Clifton.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Clifton? 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 $2.21 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Clifton cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $98K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $216K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $98K 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 685 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- The library’s own count. Libraries report their own visits, loans and programs. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.
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 Clifton
Does Clifton have a public library?
Yes. Nellie Pederson Civic Library, 406 Live Oak St., serves Clifton’s 3,532 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 32 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Nellie Pederson Civic 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 Clifton’s library?
It logged 1.9 visits and lent 3.9 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Clifton’s civic life grade?
C Clifton is ahead of 27% of U.S. towns on civic life, #263 of 539 in Texas. 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 Clifton.
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.