Gunter’s library runs 51 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Gunter Library and Museum serves Gunter’s 3,678 residents. Last year it lent 2,947 books, movies and e-books and logged 6,175 visits.
The short version on Gunter’s library
Mostly paid for by gifts, not taxes
78% of the library’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 22%. What your card is worth ↓
Kids’ books are most of what goes out
Children’s books and media make up 80% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is lower than at 82% of similar-size libraries, so the high share mostly reflects light borrowing by adults. What people borrow ↓
Programs draw a crowd
6,723 people came to the library’s 186 programs last year: 1.8 per resident, against a typical 0.5, more than at 93% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
Runs on less money than most
Gunter Library and Museum spends $9 per resident, less than 97% of similar-size libraries (typical: $43). What your card is worth ↓
Most programs are for young children
65% of the 186 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.
What’s behind Gunter’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Gunter is ahead of 98% of U.S. towns, #6 of 539 in Texas. Gunter is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Gunter’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 →
25 community nonprofits are registered in Gunter
10.4 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 (4 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
11.7%
11.7% of Gunter’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 Gunter’s residents live; 2022.
About 2 kids’ programs a week
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 Gunter last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Gunter Library and Museum serves 3,678 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. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
2,947 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 5,941 books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.4 time last year, on average.
485 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card.
Find it
Gunter Library and Museum, 110 S State Highway 289 Ste 4, Gunter.
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 $3.40 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Gunter cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $32K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $108K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $32K 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 1,985 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 Gunter
Does Gunter have a public library?
Yes. Gunter Library and Museum, 110 S State Highway 289 Ste 4, serves Gunter’s 3,678 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 27 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Gunter Library and Museum fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Gunter’s library?
It logged 1.7 visits and lent 0.8 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Gunter’s civic life grade?
A+ Gunter is ahead of 98% of U.S. towns on civic life, #6 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 Gunter.
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.