The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-03-16
BIRMINGHAM RANKS WITH LARGE CITIES IN PER CAPITA USE .0F PUBLIC LIBRARY
Goes Well Ahead of Most Other Cities When the Colored Population
 Is Taken Into
 Consideration
RY M. J. ROLES

As book readers Birmingham people average we'll up with the citizens of other cities in the United States, accord ing to data gathered from the census bureaus estimates for 1916 and the re- ports of librarians of public libraries for 1917, the fastest available reports.
 Taking Birmingham's population as whole, both white and colored, the CIT culation per capita here was several points under the average of 53 cities with populations exceeding 10000, but when the large colored population, which is excluded from the privileges of the li- brary, is taken into consideration, Bir- minghams public circulation without doubt exceeded the average.
 In the 53 cities used in this tabula- ton, all but three of which have mora than 100000 population, the average per capita circulation in 1917 was 25 books. The circulation in Birmingham was l.? books per person in the same year, based on the total estimated population of 1S1, 762, 40 per cent of which is proba- bly colored. The white population alone probably did not exceed 10000 and as the negroes were not admitted to the library nor permitted to use the books, the circulation per capita of those ac- corded the library privileges was little above 2.6, or one-tenth greater than the average for the 53 cities canvassed in this investigation.
 In the matter of circulation per book, however Birmingham with 5.7 stands al most at the head of the 53 cities, being exceeded in this respect by Los An geles, Oakland, Chicago, Portland, Ore, and Philadelphia.
 Of the 5 cities from. which statistics were gathered reported circulation Of 2.5 books per capita, 25 in excess of that number and 9 below it.
 Only public libraries maintained, or partly maintained by the cities, have been considered in making these comparisons. In most of the cities there are other li- braries to which only limited number of people have access.
 According to reports made for the year 1917 by the librarians the following number of books were in the public li- brary of each of the 5 cities considered .
 Birmingham, 55,244; Los Angeles, 309. .463 Oakland, 152, ,S90; San Francisco, 91,Y6o; Denver, 192 366; Hartford, 11S,0OO; New Haven, 135, ,S57; Jacksonville, Fla. Oess than 100, 900 popula tion), fl 1,324; Atlanta, ALTO; Chicago, S06, 172; Indianapolis, 211, ,967; Des Moines, 1O3925; New Orleans, 102.9I; Louisville, 204,310; Baltimore, 355,517; Bos- ton, 1,157,326; Cambridge. 113,S14; Fall River, 92,621; Lowell, 95,172; Worchester, 24,047; Grand Rapids, 16,603; Detroit, l. 45O, BIO; Minneapolis, 334, 76S; St. Paul, 16l,- 6O9; Kansas City. Mo, 24l.077; St. Joseph, Qess than 100000 population). s1,9So; sF- Louis, 4S7, ,336; Omaha, 133,S5S; Manchester, N. H. Qess than 100000 popuation), Sl,- 200; Camden, 66,670; Jersey City, 1S7,374; Newark, 25 65S; Paterson, 69,567 Trenton, s2, 2,5S6 Buffalo, 36S,54o; New York, 2,5S7 S05 Cincinnati, 515,906; Cleveland, 6S4,34}' Columbus, 91, ,40S; Dayton, S4,915; Portland, Ore, 266, 729; Philadelphia, 534, 152; Pitts burg, ASA. .46e; Reading, 37.O0o; Scranton, S2 iS4 Chattanooga Qess than 100000 popula- tion), 3s, 43S; San Antonio, 45,4S2; Salt Lake
 City, 69,65S; Norfolk Qess than 1O,0O' population), 24s05; Seattle. 2ss,291; Spo- kane, 76,523; Tacoma, S2,462; Milwaukee, 342764.
 Of the southern cities mentioned Jack sonville reports a circulation per capita of 22 and per book AZ; Atlanta. 21 per capita and 4.3 per book; New Orleans 5 per capita and 1.9 per book; Louisville AS per capita and 5.6 per book; Chatta- nooga, 2.S per capita and 45 per DOCK Nashville, .65 per capita and Il pe' l.o book; Houston, IA per capita and S.3 per book; San Antonio, l per capita and 2.' per book; Norfolk, .S3 per capita ana 5 per bok.
 The circulation in Birmingham was I17 and per book 5.7.
 From the above it will be seen thai while Birmingham per capita circuia tion was several points below the aver age of all the cities yet the circulation per book was 5.7. whereas the average for the 53 cities was only 3.44. Ac' cording to these figures books in the Bir- mingham public library are circulated more extensively than are the books ol any other southern city and they arc exceeded by only five other cities II the entire United States, whose averages are: Los Angeles, "A; Oakland o'9 Chicago, ss Portland, Ore, os; ane Philadelphia, 5.S.