Black River Falls Public Library · Photo: Royalbroil · CC BY-SA 3.0Black River Falls’ library runs 5.3 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24 for libraries its size
Black River Falls Public Library serves 20,790 people in and around Black River Falls. Last year it lent 57K print books and media and logged 39K visits.
Black River Falls’s library, in brief
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people, Black River Falls Public Library sits below the middle on all six per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on four. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
Black River Falls Public Library offered 110 programs last year, 5.3 per 1,000 residents against a typical 24. Kids & programs ↓
The branch is a National Register landmark
Black River Falls Public Library has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 2007. Today’s library there has 10,500 square feet. The building ↓
Most programs are for young children
65% of the 110 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 42 for ages 0–5. 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; Black River Falls Public Library serves 20,790 people in and around Black River Falls, and its numbers cover all of them.
What’s behind Black River Falls’ civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Black River Falls is ahead of 97% of U.S. towns, #10 of 358 in Wisconsin. Black River Falls 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.
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 →
22 community nonprofits are registered in Black River Falls
6.3 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 (3 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
16.9%
16.9% of Black River Falls’ Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.6% in the typical Wisconsin 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 Black River Falls’ residents live; 2022.
A National Register landmark since 2007
Black River Falls Public Library, 222 Fillmore St., Black River Falls.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Black River Falls Public Library branch.
New in Black River Falls? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Black River Falls Public Library
Black River Falls Public Library was added to the National Register of Historic Places on Dec 27, 2007. It is significant for its education, social history and architecture at the local level. Its architecture is described as Late 19th and Early 20th Century American Movements. It was listed as part of Public Library Facilities of Wisconsin MPS.
The Black River Falls Public Library is located in Black River Falls, Wisconsin. It became the first free public library in Wisconsin in 1872. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2007.
More about the building →Below most similar-size libraries on all 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Black River Falls Public Library serves 20,790 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 23 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Black River Falls Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
57K 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
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $2.96 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Black River Falls cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $391K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.2M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $391K 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 4,768 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Who has a library of their own, and how much each town borrows. Tap a town to see its library.
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.
- Digital loans not reported. The library didn’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
- System-wide. Black River Falls Public Library serves 20,790 people in and around Black River Falls, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Black River Falls.
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 Black River Falls
Does Black River Falls have a public library?
Yes. Black River Falls Public Library, 222 Fillmore St., serves 20,790 people in and around Black River Falls (the survey’s count) and is open about 47 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Black River Falls 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 Black River Falls’ library?
It logged 1.9 visits and lent 2.7 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Black River Falls’ civic life grade?
A+ Black River Falls is ahead of 97% of U.S. towns on civic life, #10 of 358 in Wisconsin. 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 Black River Falls.
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. Building history: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places; photo via Wikimedia Commons. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.