Names Hill · Photo: Realwyo · CC BY-SA 3.0La Barge’s library is a branch of Lincoln County Library System, which lends more per resident than 81% of systems its size
La Barge’s library is the Labarge Branch Library, a branch of Lincoln County Library System, which serves 20,880 people and lent 221K items last year.
The short version on La Barge’s library
Three times the programs of a typical library its size
The Lincoln County Library System ran 1,544 programs last year, about 30 a week. That’s 74 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24. People show up: 25,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
Big on e-books and audiobooks
Digital borrowing runs 3.1 e-items per resident, against a typical 1.1, higher than at 89% of similar-size libraries. It’s 30% of all loans. 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; La Barge’s library is a branch of Lincoln County Library System, so they cover the whole system (20,880 people), not just the La Barge branch.
What’s behind La Barge’s civic life grade
La Barge isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.
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 →
About 18 kids’ programs 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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Lincoln County Library System serves 20,880 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 15 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Lincoln County Library System system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
221K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
65,681 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Labarge Branch Library, 262 Main St., Labarge.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Lincoln County Library System branch.
New in La Barge? 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 $2.23 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average La Barge cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1.6M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $3.6M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.6M 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 10,700 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Labarge Branch Library is one branch of Lincoln County Library System, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 20,880 people it serves.
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 La Barge
Does La Barge have a public library?
Yes: Labarge Branch Library, 262 Main St., is a branch of Lincoln County Library System, which serves 20,880 people. The branch is open about 39 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Lincoln County Library System 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 La Barge’s library?
It logged 5.9 visits and lent 10.6 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is La Barge’s civic life grade?
La Barge isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in La Barge.
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.