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Crook County Public Library System

Sundance’s library runs 217 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size

Crook County Public Library System serves 7,592 people in and around Sundance. Last year it lent 58K books, movies and e-books and logged 26K visits.

414 Main St., Sundance 82729 · about 39 hours a week
B+Civic lifeAhead of 73% of U.S. towns. Nonprofits and volunteering.
Directions (307) 283-1006 What’s a card worth?
Borrowed a year
58K
7.7 per resident
Visits a year
26K
3.4 per resident · Above typical (3)
Programs & events
1,649
about 32 a week · 23K attended
Cardholders
33%
2,540 cards
Open
39 hrs
a week at this branch
In brief

Sundance’s library, in brief

Six times the programs of a typical library its size

Crook County Public Library System ran 1,649 programs last year, about 32 a week. That’s 217 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34. People show up: 23,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓

Kids’ books are most of what goes out

Children’s books and media make up 58% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is higher than at 79% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓

A well-funded system

Crook County Public Library System spends $86 per resident a year, about twice the typical $43 for a library its size. All of it comes from local taxes. What your card is worth ↓

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; Crook County Public Library System serves 7,592 people in and around Sundance, and its numbers cover all of them.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Sundance’s civic life grade

On community nonprofits and volunteering, Sundance is ahead of 73% of U.S. towns. Sundance is graded on two of the three inputs. Sundance’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups pulls it down.

B+
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Sundance’s overall grade.
–Library visitsServed by a county or regional system, so there is no town figureA+Community nonprofits14.8 per 1,000 residents · WY towns 8.2 · U.S. 3.7CVolunteering6.3% of adults 25–44 · WY towns 8.3% · U.S. 7.5%
All U.S. towns we grade (17,556)Ahead of 73%
FewerMore
U.S. towns with similar incomes, $46K–$77K (7,944)Ahead of 70%

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.

How sure. Graded on two inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. Sundance is small (1,141 residents), so a few dozen organizations or visits move its per-resident figures; the volunteering share is a 2022 estimate from Facebook users aged 25–44.

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 →

Places to belong

14 community nonprofits are registered in Sundance

14.8 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: human services.

Community nonprofits, by kind

Arts & culture10.99 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.24
Youth, sports & recreation22.52 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.52
Civic groups, clubs & veterans22.52 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.74
Human services33.62 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.59
Education10.99 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.43
Health00.00 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.16
Environment & animals00.55 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.17
Other33.62 per 1,000 · U.S. towns 0.47

Counted from the IRS list of tax-exempt organizations by mailing address (fractions where a ZIP code spans towns). Congregations are counted apart (2 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.

Volunteering

6.3%

6.3% of Sundance’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.3% in the typical Wyoming 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 Sundance’s residents live; 2022.

★ What stands out · Kids & programs

About 18 kids’ programs a week

Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.

Schools in Sundance →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–5292
Ages 6–11655
Teens20
Adults636
All ages46
Little ones
5.6

story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.

24K
kids’ books & media borrowed
23K
people at programs
1,649
programs
How it compares

Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 7 of 8 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 3.4 visits · typical 3Higher than 57%
Borrowing per resident 5.5 print items · typical 3.8Higher than 69%
Digital borrowing 2.2 e-items · typical 1Higher than 79%
Kids’ borrowing 3.2 kids’ items · typical 1.6Higher than 79%
Program attendance 3.1 attendees · typical 0.5Top 10%
Programs offered 217.2 per 1,000 residents · typical 34Top 10%
Cardholders 33% of residents · typical 42%Lower than 64%
Spending $86 per resident · typical $43Higher than 86%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Crook County Public Library System serves 7,592 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 10 items go out

Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Crook County Public Library System system. The library’s own count.

26K
visits
3.4 per resident
58K
loans, print + digital
7.7 per resident
1,649
programs & events
23K attended
2,540
library cards
33% of people served
Every open hour10items borrowed
Every week451people at a program
Every day23Wi-Fi sessions
9 staff (full-time equivalent)23 public computers
What people borrow

More than half the print loans are kids’ books

58K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.

58Kloans
Books & media (adults) 30%Kids’ books & media 42%E-books, audio & streaming 28%
From your couch

16,430 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.

The building

Find it

Crook County Public Library, 414 Main St., Sundance.

Directions(307) 283-1006
39
hours open a week
5,404
square feet
With a card

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 Crook County Public Library System branch.

New in Sundance? The Handbook →

Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.

What your card is worth

For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.68 worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Sundance cardholder borrows.

In a month I’d use…
Books$17 each
1
Kids’ books$12 each
1
E-books & audio$15 each
1
Movies & music$4 each
0
Programs & classes$10 a program
1
Computer & Wi-Fi$3 a session
0
Your card saves you about
$648
a year at retail prices · $54 a month

Who pays for it
$86 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $652K.

Local taxes 99%Gifts & other 1%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.1M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $652K 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 2,540 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.

  • System-wide. Crook County Public Library System serves 7,592 people in and around Sundance, so the yearly numbers cover all of them, not just Sundance.

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 Sundance

Does Sundance have a public library?

Yes. Crook County Public Library System, 414 Main St., serves 7,592 people in and around Sundance (the survey’s count) and is open about 39 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Crook County Public 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 Sundance’s library?

It logged 3.4 visits and lent 7.7 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.

What is Sundance’s civic life grade?

B+ Sundance is ahead of 73% 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 Sundance.

Town Square →
Start a conversation

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.