Bates School · Photo: Valis55 · CC BY-SA 3.0Hartford’s library is a branch of Scott Sebastian Regional Library, which lends less per resident than 92% of systems its size
Hartford’s library is the Hartford Branch Library, a branch of Scott Sebastian Regional Library, which serves 50,217 people and lent 59K items last year.
The short version on Hartford’s library
The Scott Sebastian Regional Library system is used less than most libraries its size
The Scott Sebastian Regional Library system records 0.8 visits per resident, against a typical 2.6 for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people. Borrowing is 0.8 print items per resident, against a typical 3.7. It also spends less than most: $12 per resident, against a typical $40. How it compares ↓
Open only about 15 hours a week
The Hartford branch keeps short hours: about 15 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Few programs for a library this size
The Scott Sebastian Regional Library system offered 197 programs last year, 3.9 per 1,000 residents against a typical 14. Kids & programs ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 11% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 39% for its size. How it compares ↓
Arkansas pays a big share
20% of the budget comes from the state, and 79% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
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; Hartford’s library is a branch of Scott Sebastian Regional Library, so they cover the whole system (50,217 people), not just the Hartford branch.
What’s behind Hartford’s civic life grade
Hartford isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.
Civic life counts registered nonprofits, library visits and online volunteering groups, so it can miss civic life that runs through congregations, mutual aid or neighbors looking out for each other.
Library visits: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024. Nonprofits: IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File, October 2026. Volunteering: Social Capital Atlas (Opportunity Insights), from data by Meta Platforms, Inc.; Chetty et al., Nature 2022. How TownRatings grades civic life →
Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Scott Sebastian Regional Library serves 50,217 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 11 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Scott Sebastian Regional Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
59K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
17,588 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 2 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
Find it
Hartford Branch Library, 109 S. Broadway, Hartford.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Scott Sebastian Regional Library branch.
New in Hartford? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.51 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Hartford cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $593K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $896K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $593K budget.
Fine-free. No late fees on books returned late.
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 5,649 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Hartford Branch Library is one branch of Scott Sebastian Regional Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 50,217 people it serves.
Hours are the survey’s yearly average; libraries are compared with others serving about as many people. How TownRatings uses library figures →
Questions about the library and civic life in Hartford
Does Hartford have a public library?
Yes: Hartford Branch Library, 109 S. Broadway, is a branch of Scott Sebastian Regional Library, which serves 50,217 people. The branch is open about 15 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Scott Sebastian Regional Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks and research databases with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Hartford’s library?
It logged 0.8 visits and lent 1.2 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Hartford’s civic life grade?
Hartford isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Hartford.
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.