← How Olean ranks
Missouri rankings · Libraries Towns with the most-used public libraries in Missouri Ranked by library visits per resident in a year, at the public library that serves the town. 50 towns with 2,500+ residents.
Olean Not on this list Olean has fewer than 2,500 residents, the floor for MO lists.
All 50 towns Visits per resident, highest first.
# Town Visits per resident Library Visits a year
1
Richmond Heights 9,153 people 16.6 per resident Richmond Heights Memorial Library 154,461
2
North Kansas City 4,983 people 16.5 per resident North Kansas City Public Library 73,594
3
Mountain View 2,658 people 12.3 per resident Mountain View Public Library 31,200
4
Macon 5,466 people 9.7 per resident Macon Public Library 53,019
5
West Plains 12,441 people 9.1 per resident West Plains Public Library 111,363
6
Rolla 20,287 people 7.7 per resident Rolla Public Library 153,417
7
Brentwood 8,144 people 7.6 per resident Brentwood Public Library 62,287
8
Montgomery City 2,801 people 7.4 per resident Montgomery City Public Library 20,764
9
Centralia 4,690 people 6.6 per resident Centralia Public Library 26,936
10
Kirkwood 29,363 people 6.5 per resident Kirkwood Public Library 191,775
11
De Soto 6,470 people 6.5 per resident De Soto Public Library 42,237
12
Carrollton 3,145 people 5.7 per resident Carrollton Public Library 20,020
13
Maplewood 8,156 people 5.5 per resident Maplewood Public Library 45,148
14
Salem 4,677 people 4.9 per resident Salem Public Library 22,672
15
Webster Groves 23,712 people 4.8 per resident Webster Groves Public Library 114,250
16
Nevada 7,925 people 4.6 per resident Nevada Public Library 37,470
17
Joplin 52,593 people 4.4 per resident Joplin Public Library 216,461
18
Poplar Bluff 16,254 people 4.3 per resident Poplar Bluff Municipal Library District 69,488
19
Festus 13,201 people 4.3 per resident Festus Public Library 54,478
20
Caruthersville 5,326 people 3.9 per resident Caruthersville Public Library 21,595
21
Farmington 18,282 people 3.8 per resident Farmington Public Library 69,820
22
St. Louis 288,512 people 3.5 per resident City of St. Louis Municipal Library District 1,050,908
23
Ferguson 18,213 people 3.4 per resident Ferguson Municipal Public Library District 63,094
24
Canton 2,752 people 3.4 per resident Canton Public Library 9,168
25
Cape Girardeau 40,344 people 3.3 per resident Municipal Library District of the City of Cape Girardeau 119,264
26
Cameron 8,519 people 3.2 per resident Cameron Public Library 27,026
27
Bowling Green 4,170 people 3.1 per resident Bowling Green Public Library 12,870
28
Webb City 13,221 people 2.8 per resident Webb City Public Library 36,000
29
Dexter 7,891 people 2.7 per resident Keller Public Library of Dexter 21,121
30
Rock Hill 4,693 people 2.6 per resident Rock Hill Public Library 12,462
31
St. James 3,916 people 2.6 per resident James Memorial Library 10,267
32
Louisiana 3,228 people 2.4 per resident Louisiana Public Library 7,716
33
Maryville 10,428 people 2.2 per resident Maryville Public Library 23,208
34
University City 34,685 people 2.1 per resident University City Public Library 74,323
35
Hannibal 16,771 people 2.1 per resident Hannibal Free Public Library 35,393
36
Higginsville 4,781 people 2.1 per resident Robertson Memorial Library 8,748
37
Crystal City 4,718 people 2.1 per resident Crystal City Public Library 9,799
38
Carthage 15,574 people 2.0 per resident Carthage Public Library 31,200
39
St. Joseph 71,236 people 1.9 per resident Saint Joseph Public Library 119,236
40
Park Hills 8,678 people 1.9 per resident Park Hills Public Library 16,721
41
Brookfield 4,144 people 1.9 per resident Brookfield Public Library 7,920
42
Chaffee 3,026 people 1.9 per resident Chaffee Public Library 5,864
43
Marshall 13,739 people 1.7 per resident Marshall Public Library 23,881
44
Bethany 3,080 people 1.6 per resident Bethany Public Library 4,540
45
Monroe City 3,028 people 1.6 per resident Monroe City Public Library 3,941
46
Tipton 2,667 people 1.5 per resident Price James Memorial Library 4,316
47
Sikeston 16,320 people 1.4 per resident Sikeston Public Library 20,176
48
Sedalia 22,003 people 1.3 per resident Sedalia Public Library 26,104
49
Bonne Terre 6,683 people 1.3 per resident Bonne Terre Memorial Library 9,297
50
Desloge 4,863 people 1.1 per resident Desloge Public Library 5,452
We rank every town by library visits per resident in a year, at the public library that serves the town. The highest figure ranks #1. Each library reports its own yearly numbers to the Institute of Museum and Library Services (fiscal year 2024), and each town’s Library page shows how it compares with libraries of a similar size nationwide.
A town is ranked only when its library system serves that town alone, and the library’s own count of the people it serves is within 20% of the town’s population. Towns served by a county or regional system, or sharing a library with a neighbor, can’t be credited with the numbers, so they aren’t ranked. Libraries that didn’t respond to the survey aren’t ranked either. Vacation towns can rank high because summer residents and visitors use the library too.
Only towns with at least 2,500 residents are ranked; Census estimates for smaller places are too uncertain. Population and income: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Libraries: IMLS Public Libraries Survey . Town photos: Wikimedia Commons, credited on each town’s page.
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