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Refugio County CourthouseRefugio County Courthouse · Photo: Larry D. Moore · CC BY 4.0
Dennis M O'Connor Public Library

Refugio’s library logs 0.8 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size

Dennis M O'Connor Public Library serves 6,666 people in and around Refugio. Last year it lent 5,550 books, movies and e-books and logged 5,368 visits.

815 Commerce St., Refugio 78377 · about 45 hours a week
A+Civic lifeAhead of 98% of U.S. towns · #5 of 539 in Texas. Nonprofits and volunteering.
Directions (361) 526-2608 What’s a card worth?
Borrowed a year
5,550
0.8 per resident
Visits a year
5,368
0.8 per resident · Below typical (3)
Programs & events
11
about 1 a week · 109 attended
Cardholders
15%
988 cards
Open
45 hrs
a week at this branch
In brief

What Refugio’s library is like

Dennis M O'Connor Public Library is used less than most libraries its size

Dennis M O'Connor Public Library records 0.8 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people. Borrowing is 0.7 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8. It also spends less than most: $22 per resident, against a typical $43. How it compares ↓

Few programs for a library this size

Dennis M O'Connor Public Library offered 11 programs last year, 1.7 per 1,000 residents against a typical 34. Kids & programs ↓

Gifts and endowments pay a real share

34% of the system’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 66%. What your card is worth ↓

Few residents carry a card

Only 15% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 42% for its size. How it compares ↓

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; Dennis M O'Connor Public Library serves 6,666 people in and around Refugio, and its numbers cover all of them.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Refugio’s civic life grade

On community nonprofits and volunteering, Refugio is ahead of 98% of U.S. towns, #5 of 539 in Texas. Refugio is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups ranks highest.

A+
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Refugio’s overall grade.
–Library visitsServed by a county or regional system, so there is no town figureACommunity nonprofits7.6 per 1,000 residents · TX towns 3.3 · U.S. 3.7A+Volunteering15.4% of adults 25–44 · TX towns 5.7% · U.S. 7.5%
All U.S. towns we grade (17,556)Ahead of 98%
FewerMore
Texas towns we grade (539)#5 of 539
U.S. towns with similar incomes, $37K–$61K (4,508)Ahead of 98%

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. Refugio is small (2,752 residents), so a few dozen organizations or visits move its per-resident figures; 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

21 community nonprofits are registered in Refugio

7.6 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.

Community nonprofits, by kind

Arts & culture10.36 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.24
Youth, sports & recreation51.81 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.52
Civic groups, clubs & veterans31.08 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.74
Human services00.00 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.59
Education20.72 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.43
Health00.00 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.16
Environment & animals10.36 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.17
Other93.25 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 (5 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

15.4%

15.4% of Refugio’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 Refugio’s residents live; 2022.

How it compares

Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 0.8 visits · typical 3Bottom 10%
Borrowing per resident 0.7 print items · typical 3.8Bottom 10%
Digital borrowing 0.2 e-items · typical 1Lower than 86%
Kids’ borrowing 0.2 kids’ items · typical 1.6Bottom 10%
Program attendance 0 attendees · typical 0.5Bottom 10%
Programs offered 1.7 per 1,000 residents · typical 34Bottom 10%
Cardholders 15% of residents · typical 42%Bottom 10%
Spending $22 per resident · typical $43Lower than 81%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Dennis M O'Connor Public Library serves 6,666 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 3 items go out

Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Dennis M O'Connor Public Library system. The library’s own count.

5,368
visits
0.8 per resident
5,550
loans, print + digital
0.8 per resident
11
programs & events
109 attended
988
library cards
15% of people served
Every open hour3items borrowed
Every week2people at a program
Every day8Wi-Fi sessions
2 staff (full-time equivalent)6 public computers
What people borrow

Mostly books and media off the shelf

5,550 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.

5,550loans
Books & media (adults) 54%Kids’ books & media 25%E-books, audio & streaming 21%
From your couch

1,183 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.

Kids & programs

11 programs a year

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

Schools in Refugio →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–50
Ages 6–115
Teens1
Adults5
All ages0
1,378
kids’ books & media borrowed
109
people at programs
11
programs
The building

Find it

Dennis M O'Connor Public Library, 815 Commerce St., Refugio.

Directions(361) 526-2608
45
hours open a week
5,000
square feet
With a card

E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Dennis M O'Connor Public Library branch.

New in Refugio? The Handbook →

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

What your card is worth

What a library card is worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Refugio 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
$22 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $149K.

Local taxes 66%Federal 0%Gifts & other 34%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $95K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $149K 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 988 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. Dennis M O'Connor Public Library serves 6,666 people in and around Refugio, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Refugio.

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 Refugio

Does Refugio have a public library?

Yes. Dennis M O'Connor Public Library, 815 Commerce St., serves 6,666 people in and around Refugio (the survey’s count) and is open about 45 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Dennis M O'Connor 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 Refugio’s library?

It logged 0.8 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 Refugio’s civic life grade?

A+ Refugio is ahead of 98% of U.S. towns on civic life, #5 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 Refugio.

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.