Rockaway Twsp. Pub. Lib.
Rockaway Township Free Public Library serves 25,341 people in and around Mount Hope. Last year it lent 183K books, movies and e-books and logged 103K visits.
The short version on Mount Hope’s library
Above typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, Rockaway Township Free Public Library is above the middle on all seven per-resident measures we compare, with three in the top 30%. No single number stands out, and none lags far behind. How it compares ↓
Mount Hope out-borrows every town next door
At 7.2 loans per resident, Mount Hope leads the four towns here. The closest is Hibernia, at 7.2. Libraries next door ↓
Rockaway Township Free Public Library serves more than Mount Hope
The library’s service area covers 25,341 people in and around Mount Hope, so its per-resident numbers are measured against that wider population. How it compares ↓
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.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S. A tiny town’s library always looks busier per person, so it’s only compared with its own size.
library systems for visits per resident.
Rockaway Township Free Public Library serves 25,341 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Find it
Rockaway Twsp. Pub. Lib., 61 Mount Hope Road, Rockaway.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Mount Hope? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Every hour the doors are open, about 47 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
183K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 76K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.7 times last year, on average.
49,987 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 3 kids’ programs 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.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.67 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Mount Hope cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $1.7M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $2.8M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.7M budget.
Late fines apply to some overdue items.
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 16,013 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Mount Hope borrows the most per resident of the 4 towns here. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Hope | Rockaway Twsp. Pub. Lib. | 7.2 | 62 |
| Hibernia | Hibernia Branch | 7.2 | 12 |
| Rockaway | Rockaway Twsp. Pub. Lib. | 7.2 | 62 |
| Wharton | Wharton Public Library | 3.1 | 41 |
| White Meadow Lake | None of its own | — | — |
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.
About these numbers
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Hours are an average. The 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.
- 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.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Mount Hope.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
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.