Stanislaus County Free Library
Stanislaus County Free Library is a county public library system based in Modesto (Stanislaus County), California, serving a legal service area of 548,744 residents through 13 library buildings. Among profiled systems serving 500,000 to 999,999 residents, it ranks third-lowest for public computers per resident, fourth-lowest for paid staff per resident and fourth-lowest for the electronic share of checkouts.
By population served it is the 15th-largest of the 170 profiled systems in California. Against the median system of its size class, it records 43% fewer physical checkouts per resident and 42% less operating spending per resident.
Stanislaus County against the 61 systems of its size class
Stanislaus County, building by building
The 13 buildings cover 157,267 square feet in total, 0.29 square feet per resident against a median of 0.45 for the size class. The largest building is Modesto Library at 62,000 square feet; the smallest is Denair Library at 2,000. The longest hours are at Modesto Library, 46 a week.
| Building | Type | Town | Hours a week | Floor area, sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Modesto Library | Central library | Modesto | 46 | 62,000 |
| Ceres Library | Branch | Ceres | 30 | 4,500 |
| Denair Library | Branch | Denair | 24 | 2,000 |
| Empire Library | Branch | Empire | 30 | 4,720 |
| Hughson Library | Branch | Hughson | 30 | 2,100 |
| Keyes Library | Branch | Keyes | 28 | 2,000 |
| Newman Library | Branch | Newman | 30 | 2,613 |
| Oakdale Library | Branch | Oakdale | 30 | 6,500 |
| Patterson Library | Branch | Patterson | 30 | 4,070 |
| Riverbank Library | Branch | Riverbank | 30 | 3,594 |
| Salida Library | Branch | Salida | 39 | 45,000 |
| Turlock Library | Branch | Turlock | 39 | 16,000 |
| Waterford Library | Branch | Waterford | 31 | 2,170 |
Stanislaus County in numbers, FY 2024
- Visits
- 777,197
- Physical checkouts
- 1,216,002
- …of children's materials
- 703,965
- Electronic checkouts
- 250,991
- …of e-books
- 191,199
- …of e-audio
- 52,551
- Registered users
- 330,492
- Program sessions
- 2,616
- Program attendance
- 80,745
- Print volumes
- 500,681
- Audio items (physical)
- 12,909
- Video items (physical)
- 37,096
- Public computers
- 130
- Public service hours, all outlets
- 21,684
- Paid staff (full-time equivalent)
- 95.8
- Operating spending
- $15.2 million
- …on books and other materials
- $973,285
- Overdue fines on print items
- charged
Where Stanislaus County gets its operating money
Operating revenue came to $16.7 million, or $30.38 per resident. The local-government share is close to the combined share for the 170 profiled systems in California.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other (fines, fees, gifts, grants)
Stanislaus County since FY 2019
Visits were 44% below the FY 2019 count of 1.4 million (size-class median: −30%). Physical checkouts moved 19% down over the same span.
- Visits
- Physical checkouts
Who comes to Stanislaus County programs
Programs for children up to age 11 drew 91% of all program attendance, and sessions averaged 31 people each.
County libraries of similar size in other states
Of these six systems, five record more visits per resident than this one. The highest checkout rate in the group belongs to Richland County Public Library in South Carolina.
| System | Based in | Residents | Visits per resident | Checkouts per resident | Spending per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monmouth County Library | Manalapan, NJ | 425,110 | 1.89 | 3.46 | $38.90 |
| Richland County Public Library | Columbia, SC | 416,147 | 2.83 | 5.42 | $81.95 |
| Marion County Public Library System | Ocala, FL | 413,951 | 1.39 | 1.84 | $21.62 |
| Collier County Public Library | Naples, FL | 408,363 | 2.08 | 2.98 | $22.35 |
| Charleston County Public Library System | Charleston, SC | 408,235 | 3.26 | 4.11 | $90.35 |
| Brazoria County Library System | Angleton, TX | 398,938 | 1.86 | 3.60 | $23.35 |
Nearest in size within California
- Alameda County Library · Fremont · 581,626 residents
- Sonoma County Library · Rohnert Park · 478,152 residents
- Long Beach Public Library · Long Beach · 458,813 residents
- Santa Clara County Library · Campbell · 456,355 residents