Bridge 6 · Photo: Mfwills · CC BY-SA 3.0Johnson’s library logs 0.9 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size
Johnson Public serves Johnson’s 3,467 residents. Last year it lent 9,881 print books and media and logged 3,075 visits.
Johnson’s library, in brief
Kids’ books are most of what goes out
Children’s books and media make up 76% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is higher than at 63% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
Fewer visits than most libraries its size
Johnson Public records 0.9 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, below 90% of similar-size libraries. Borrowing holds up better, at 2.9 print items per resident. 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.
What’s behind Johnson’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Johnson is ahead of 37% of U.S. towns, #61 of 71 in Vermont. Johnson’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; library visits pull it down.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($42K–$69K) 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 →
18 community nonprofits are registered in Johnson
5.1 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.
Community nonprofits, by kind
Counted from the IRS list of tax-exempt organizations by mailing address (fractions where a ZIP code spans towns). Congregations are counted apart (3 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.
7.7%
7.7% of Johnson’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.5% in the typical Vermont 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 Johnson’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Johnson Public serves 3,467 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 8 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
9,881 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 13K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.8 time last year, on average.
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, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in Johnson last year.
Find it
Johnson Public, 7 Library Dr., Johnson.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Johnson? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.16 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Johnson cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $125K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $145K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $125K budget.
Fine-free. No late fees on books returned late.
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 1,321 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Johnson ranks 2nd of 3 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hyde Park | Lanpher Memorial fine-free | 4.9 | 31 | A− |
| Johnson | Johnson Public fine-free | 2.9 | 32 | C+ |
| Cambridge | Varnum Memorial fine-free | 2.4 | 38 | B− |
| Morristown | Morristown Centennial fine-free | — | 40 | A+ |
| Waterville | Waterville Town | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Eden | None of its own | — | — | C |
Loans = print + digital items borrowed in the library’s fiscal year, per person it serves. — = no library of its own, a county or regional system (its numbers cover many towns), or no report. Civic life: — = not graded (unincorporated places, whose nonprofits can’t be placed by mailing address, or towns with fewer than two of the three inputs).
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Visits are a typical-week estimate. Johnson Public counted one typical week and multiplied by 52, as the survey allows.
- Digital loans not reported. Vermont libraries often don’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
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 Johnson
Does Johnson have a public library?
Yes. Johnson Public, 7 Library Dr., serves Johnson’s 3,467 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 32 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Johnson Public fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks and research databases with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Johnson’s library?
It logged 0.9 visits and lent 2.9 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Johnson’s civic life grade?
C+ Johnson is ahead of 37% of U.S. towns on civic life, #61 of 71 in Vermont. 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 Johnson.
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.