West Deptford Public Library
West Deptford Public Library serves 22,197 people in and around Thorofare. Last year it lent 54K books, movies and e-books and logged 60K visits.
Every hour the doors are open, about 20 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Close to typical for its size
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 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.
West Deptford Public Library serves 22,197 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
54K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 97K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.5 time last year, on average.
9,903 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 4 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.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Thorofare cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $934K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $904K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $934K 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 8,933 cardholders ÷ 12.
Find it
West Deptford Public Library, 420 Crown Point Road, Thorofare.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Thorofare? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Libraries next door
Thorofare ranks 2nd of 3 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tinicum | Tinicum Memorial Public Library | 6.0 | 43 |
| Thorofare | West Deptford Public Library | 2.4 | 52 |
| West Deptford | West Deptford Public Library | 2.4 | 52 |
| Philadelphia | Free Library of Philadelphia fine-free | — | 49 |
| National Park | 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 Thorofare.
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.