Library · Gobles
Gobles Branch Library
Gobles’s library is the Gobles Branch Library, a branch of Van Buren District Library, open about 45 hours a week.
IMLS Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024Multi-county system. Gobles’s branch belongs to Van Buren District Library, which serves 44,230 people. The yearly numbers below are for the whole system, not just this branch. A card works at every branch.
Your branch
Gobles Branch Library
105 East Main Street, Gobles 49055
45 hrsopen a week
1,140sq ft
Fine-freeNo late fees on books returned late
E-books & audiobooksBorrow from home with your card
Auto-renews loansBooks renew on their own if no one’s waiting
Research databasesOnline courses, journals, genealogy and more
Fiscal year 2024
A year at Van Buren District Library
132K
visits
3.0 per resident
311K
loans, print + digital
7.0 per resident
2,294
programs & events
43K attended
15K
library cards
35% of people served
How it compares
Against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people
Per-resident numbers, compared only with libraries of a similar size across the country, because a tiny town’s library always looks busier per person.
Visits per resident
3.0 visits · typical 2.6
Higher than 58% of similar-size libraries
Borrowing per resident
6.1 print items · typical 3.7
Higher than 72% of similar-size libraries
Digital borrowing
0.9 e-items · typical 1.2
A little below typical (42th percentile)
Kids’ borrowing
3.2 kids’ items · typical 1.7
Higher than 76% of similar-size libraries
Program attendance
1.0 attendees · typical 0.3
Top 10% of similar-size libraries
Cardholders
35% of residents
A little below typical (39th percentile)
Borrowing & programs
What people use it for
What people borrow
311K loans last year
Books & media (adults)41%Kids’ books & media46%E-books, audio & streaming13%
Who the programs are for
2,294 story times, classes, clubs and events
Money
Who pays for it
$48 per resident a year
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $2.1M.
Local 86%State 2%Gifts & other 13%
About these numbers
How to read this page
Hours are an averageThe survey reports a building’s public hours for the whole year. We divide by the weeks it was open, so check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Compared by size“Similar-size” means libraries serving about as many people, nationwide. Per-resident numbers always flatter the smallest towns, so they’re never compared with big cities.
One year, the library’s own countLibraries report their own visits, loans and programs for fiscal year 2024. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.
Source: Institute of Museum and Library Services, Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024. Distances are straight-line from the town center.