Dr. George Rigas House · Photo: Generic1139 · CC BY-SA 3.0Weirton’s library logs 0.6 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries its size
Mary H. Weir Public Library serves Weirton’s 21,893 residents. Last year it lent 41K books, movies and e-books and logged 14K visits.
The short version on Weirton’s library
Mary H. Weir Public Library is used less than most libraries its size
Mary H. Weir Public Library records 0.6 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people. Borrowing is 1.2 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
Mary H. Weir Public Library offered 91 programs last year, 4.2 per 1,000 residents against a typical 24. Kids & programs ↓
Most programs are for young children
77% of the 91 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including 30 for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
A big collection for the borrowing it gets
Mary H. Weir Public Library holds 123,000 books and other items, but the average item went out less than once last year. What people borrow ↓
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 Weirton’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Weirton is ahead of 13% of U.S. towns. All three inputs sit below most U.S. towns; Weirton’s count of community nonprofits comes closest to the middle.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($45K–$74K) 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 →
64 community nonprofits are registered in Weirton
3.4 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 (22 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.
5.7%
5.7% of Weirton’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.9% in the typical West Virginia 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 Weirton’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Mary H. Weir Public Library serves 21,893 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 19 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
41K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
The survey has no count of children’s loans for Weirton’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 123K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.2 time last year, on average.
13,438 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. 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.
Find it
Mary H. Weir Public Library, 3442 Main Street, Weirton.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Weirton? 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 Weirton cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $685K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $684K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $685K 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 13,568 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.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weirton | Mary H. Weir Public Library fine-free | 1.9 | 41 | D |
| Island Creek Township | Toronto Branch fine-free | — | 53 | C+ |
| Steubenville | Public Library of Steubenville & Jefferson County fine-free | — | 59 | C+ |
| Toronto | Toronto Branch fine-free | — | 53 | A |
| Pottery Addition | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Colliers | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Hanover Township | None of its own | — | — | B+ |
| Paris | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
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.
- The library’s own count. Libraries report their own visits, loans and programs. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.
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 Weirton
Does Weirton have a public library?
Yes. Mary H. Weir Public Library, 3442 Main Street, serves Weirton’s 21,893 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 41 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Mary H. Weir Public Library 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 Weirton’s library?
It logged 0.6 visits and lent 1.9 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Weirton’s civic life grade?
D Weirton is ahead of 13% 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 Weirton.
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.