Photo: Renelibrary · CC BY-SA 4.0Paducah’s library runs 128 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
Bicentennial City-County Library serves 1,294 people in and around Paducah. Last year it lent 1,030 print books and media and logged 2,652 visits.
Paducah’s library, in brief
People visit, but borrow less than most
Bicentennial City-County Library lends 0.8 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries serving under 2,500 people, fewer than 93% of similar-size libraries, though visits are closer to typical. What people borrow ↓
Programs lean toward adults
62% of the 165 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 47 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; Bicentennial City-County Library serves 1,294 people in and around Paducah, and its numbers cover all of them; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Paducah’s civic life grade
Paducah 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 4 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Bicentennial City-County Library serves 1,294 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
A year at Bicentennial City-County Library
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Bicentennial City-County Library system. The library’s own count.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
1,030 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.
165 programs a year
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
Bicentennial City-County Library, 809 Richards St., Paducah.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Bicentennial City-County Library branch.
New in Paducah? 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 Paducah cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $73K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $36K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $73K 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 904 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. Bicentennial City-County Library serves 1,294 people in and around Paducah, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Paducah.
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 Paducah
Does Paducah have a public library?
Yes. Bicentennial City-County Library, 809 Richards St., serves 1,294 people in and around Paducah (the survey’s count) and is open about 24 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Bicentennial City-County 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 Paducah’s library?
It logged 2.0 visits and lent 0.8 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Paducah’s civic life grade?
Paducah 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 Paducah.
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.