First Presbyterian Church · Photo: Larry D. Moore · CC BY 4.0Van Horn’s library runs 7.3 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
Van Horn City County Library serves 2,196 people in and around Van Horn. Last year it logged 7,139 visits.
What’s behind Van Horn’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Van Horn is ahead of 39% of U.S. towns. Van Horn’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups pulls it down.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($45K–$75K) 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 →
13 community nonprofits are registered in Van Horn
6.8 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.
1.8%
1.8% of Van Horn’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 Van Horn’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 5 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Van Horn City County Library serves 2,196 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
A year at Van Horn City County Library
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Van Horn City County Library system. The library’s own count.
Loans aren’t shown: this year’s report counted only 308 items borrowed against 7,139 visits, so we leave the count out.
16 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
Van Horn City County Library, 410 Crockett St., Van Horn.
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 Van Horn cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $173K.
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 234 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Van Horn City County Library serves 2,196 people in and around Van Horn, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Van Horn.
- Loans left out. This year’s loan count is far below the library’s visits and shelves, so we leave it out.
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 Van Horn
Does Van Horn have a public library?
Yes. Van Horn City County Library, 410 Crockett St., serves 2,196 people in and around Van Horn (the survey’s count) and is open about 37 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Van Horn City County Library fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Van Horn’s library?
It logged 3.3 visits per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Van Horn’s civic life grade?
C+ Van Horn is ahead of 39% 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 Van Horn.
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.