Orange Grove’s library is a branch of Alicia Salinas Public Library, which lends less per resident than 98% of systems its size
Orange Grove’s library is the Orange Grove School/Public Library, a branch of Alicia Salinas Public Library, which serves 24,018 people and lent 11K items last year.
Orange Grove’s library, in brief
The Alicia Salinas Public Library system is used less than most libraries its size
The Alicia Salinas Public Library system records 0.8 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people. Borrowing is 0.4 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9. It also spends less than most: $18 per resident, against a typical $43. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
The Alicia Salinas Public Library system offered 80 programs last year, 3.3 per 1,000 residents against a typical 24. Kids & programs ↓
Most programs are for young children
75% of the 80 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 0 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Kids’ books are most of what goes out
Children’s books and media make up 65% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is lower than at 92% of similar-size libraries, so the high share mostly reflects light borrowing by adults. 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; Orange Grove’s library is a branch of Alicia Salinas Public Library, so they cover the whole system (24,018 people), not just the Orange Grove branch.
What’s behind Orange Grove’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Orange Grove is ahead of 18% of U.S. towns. Orange Grove is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Orange Grove’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Alicia Salinas Public Library spends $18 per resident, against a typical $43 for libraries its size.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($34K–$56K) 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 →
4 community nonprofits are registered in Orange Grove
3.3 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 (1 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
5.2%
5.2% of Orange Grove’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 Orange Grove’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Alicia Salinas Public Library serves 24,018 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 3 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Alicia Salinas Public Library system. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
11K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 1 kids’ program a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
Find it
Orange Grove School/Public Library, 504 S Dibrell St., Orange Grove.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Alicia Salinas Public Library branch.
New in Orange Grove? 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 Orange Grove cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $430K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $161K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $430K 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 10,027 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Digital loans not reported. The library didn’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
- System-wide. Orange Grove School/Public Library is one branch of Alicia Salinas Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 24,018 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 Orange Grove
Does Orange Grove have a public library?
Yes: Orange Grove School/Public Library, 504 S Dibrell St., is a branch of Alicia Salinas Public Library, which serves 24,018 people. The branch is open about 49 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Alicia Salinas Public 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 Orange Grove’s library?
It logged 0.8 visits and lent 0.4 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Orange Grove’s civic life grade?
C− Orange Grove is ahead of 18% of U.S. towns on civic life. 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 Orange Grove.
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.