Library · Athens
Spalding Memorial Library
Athens’s library is the Spalding Memorial Library, a branch of Spalding Memorial Library, open about 42 hours a week.
IMLS Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024Regional system. Athens’s branch belongs to Spalding Memorial Library, which serves 8,451 people. The yearly numbers below are for the whole system, not just this branch. A card works at every branch.
Your branch
Spalding Memorial Library
724 S Main St., Athens 18810
42 hrsopen a week
4,169sq ft
Charges late finesLate fees on some overdue items
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 Spalding Memorial Library
28K
visits
3.3 per resident
42K
loans, print + digital
5.0 per resident
502
programs & events
9,646 attended
1,956
library cards
23% of people served
How it compares
Against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 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
3.3 visits · typical 3.0
Higher than 54% of similar-size libraries
Borrowing per resident
4.3 print items · typical 3.8
Higher than 55% of similar-size libraries
Digital borrowing
0.7 e-items · typical 1.0
A little below typical (40th percentile)
Kids’ borrowing
2.1 kids’ items · typical 1.6
Higher than 62% of similar-size libraries
Program attendance
1.1 attendees · typical 0.5
Higher than 83% of similar-size libraries
Cardholders
23% of residents
Lower than most similar-size libraries (19th percentile)
Borrowing & programs
What people use it for
What people borrow
42K loans last year
Books & media (adults)43%Kids’ books & media43%E-books, audio & streaming15%
Who the programs are for
502 story times, classes, clubs and events
Money
Who pays for it
$38 per resident a year
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $318K.
Local 9%State 12%Gifts & other 79%
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.