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Mallet Event Center and Rodeo ArenaPhoto: Flickr user Barbara Brannon · CC BY 2.0
Hockley County Memorial Library

Levelland’s library logs 0.4 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries its size

Hockley County Memorial Library serves 20,168 people in and around Levelland. Last year it lent 22K books, movies and e-books and logged 7,320 visits.

811 Austin St., Levelland 79336 · about 41 hours a week
C−Civic lifeAhead of 16% of U.S. towns · #350 of 539 in Texas. Nonprofits and volunteering.
Directions (806) 894-6750 What’s a card worth?
Borrowed a year
22K
1.1 per resident
Visits a year
7,320
0.4 per resident · Below typical (3.1)
Programs & events
100
about 2 a week · 1,611 attended
Cardholders
27%
5,407 cards
Open
41 hrs
a week at this branch
In brief

Levelland’s library, in brief

Hockley County Memorial Library is used less than most libraries its size

Hockley County Memorial Library records 0.4 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people. Borrowing is 1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9. It also spends less than most: $9 per resident, against a typical $43. How it compares ↓

Programs are almost all for children

89% of the 100 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 39 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓

Few programs for a library this size

Hockley County Memorial Library offered 100 programs last year, 5 per 1,000 residents against a typical 24. Kids & programs ↓

Runs on less money than most

Hockley County Memorial Library spends $9 per resident, less than 97% of similar-size libraries (typical: $43). What your card is worth ↓

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; Hockley County Memorial Library serves 20,168 people in and around Levelland, and its numbers cover all of them.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Levelland’s civic life grade

On community nonprofits and volunteering, Levelland is ahead of 16% of U.S. towns, #350 of 539 in Texas. Levelland is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Levelland’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.

C−
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Levelland’s overall grade.
–Library visitsServed by a county or regional system, so there is no town figureC+Community nonprofits3.1 per 1,000 residents · TX towns 3.3 · U.S. 3.7C−Volunteering5.3% of adults 25–44 · TX towns 5.7% · U.S. 7.5%
All U.S. towns we grade (17,556)Ahead of 16%
FewerMore
Texas towns we grade (539)Ahead of 35%
U.S. towns with similar incomes, $44K–$72K (7,161)Ahead of 16%

Hockley County Memorial Library spends $9 per resident, against a typical $43 for libraries its size.

Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($44K–$72K) 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.

How sure. Graded on two inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The volunteering share is a 2022 estimate from Facebook users aged 25–44.

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 →

Places to belong

38 community nonprofits are registered in Levelland

3.1 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.

Community nonprofits, by kind

Arts & culture30.24 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.24
Youth, sports & recreation40.32 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.52
Civic groups, clubs & veterans60.48 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.74
Human services60.48 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.59
Education40.32 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.43
Health30.24 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.16
Environment & animals20.16 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.17
Other100.80 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.47

Counted from the IRS list of tax-exempt organizations by mailing address (fractions where a ZIP code spans towns). Congregations are counted apart (20 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 1 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.

Volunteering

5.3%

5.3% of Levelland’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 Levelland’s residents live; 2022.

How it compares

Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 0.4 visits · typical 3.1Bottom 10%
Borrowing per resident 1 print items · typical 3.9Bottom 10%
Digital borrowing 0.1 e-items · typical 1.1Bottom 10%
Kids’ borrowing 0.3 kids’ items · typical 1.8Bottom 10%
Program attendance 0.1 attendees · typical 0.4Bottom 10%
Programs offered 5 per 1,000 residents · typical 24Bottom 10%
Cardholders 27% of residents · typical 40%Lower than 74%
Spending $9 per resident · typical $43Bottom 10%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Hockley County Memorial Library serves 20,168 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 10 items go out

Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Hockley County Memorial Library system. The library’s own count.

7,320
visits
0.4 per resident
22K
loans, print + digital
1.1 per resident
100
programs & events
1,611 attended
5,407
library cards
27% of people served
Every open hour10items borrowed
Every week31people at a program
Every week141visits
3 staff (full-time equivalent)6 public computers
What people borrow

Mostly books and media off the shelf

22K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.

22Kloans
Books & media (adults) 57%Kids’ books & media 32%E-books, audio & streaming 11%
From your couch

2,484 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.

Kids & programs

About 2 kids’ programs a week

Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.

Schools in Levelland →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–539
Ages 6–1150
Teens0
Adults11
All ages0
Little ones
0.8

story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.

6,882
kids’ books & media borrowed
1,611
people at programs
100
programs
The building

Find it

Hockley County Memorial Library, 811 Austin St., Levelland.

Directions(806) 894-6750
41
hours open a week
3,363
square feet
With a card

E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Hockley County Memorial Library branch.

New in Levelland? The Handbook →

Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.

What your card is worth

For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.84 worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Levelland cardholder borrows.

In a month I’d use…
Books$17 each
1
Kids’ books$12 each
0
E-books & audio$15 each
0
Movies & music$4 each
0
Programs & classes$10 a program
0
Computer & Wi-Fi$3 a session
0
Your card saves you about
$204
a year at retail prices · $17 a month

Who pays for it
$9 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $187K.

Local taxes 99%Gifts & other 1%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $345K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $187K 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 5,407 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.

  • System-wide. Hockley County Memorial Library serves 20,168 people in and around Levelland, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Levelland.

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 Levelland

Does Levelland have a public library?

Yes. Hockley County Memorial Library, 811 Austin St., serves 20,168 people in and around Levelland (the survey’s count) and is open about 41 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Hockley County Memorial Library 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 Levelland’s library?

It logged 0.4 visits and lent 1.1 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.

What is Levelland’s civic life grade?

C− Levelland is ahead of 16% of U.S. towns on civic life, #350 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 Levelland.

Town Square →
Start a conversation

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.