Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 3.0Springfield’s library is a branch of Baca County Library, which lends less per resident than 65% of systems its size
Springfield’s library is the Springfield Library, a branch of Baca County Library, which serves 3,374 people and lent 9,909 items last year.
Springfield’s library, in brief
Few programs for a library this size
The Baca County Library system offered 11 programs last year, 3.3 per 1,000 residents against a typical 34. Kids & programs ↓
Almost all the borrowing is off the shelf
Only 4% of loans are e-books, audiobooks or streaming, fewer per resident than at 88% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
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; Springfield’s library is a branch of Baca County Library, so they cover the whole system (3,374 people), not just the Springfield branch.
What’s behind Springfield’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Springfield is among the top 1% of U.S. towns. Springfield is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs put Springfield near the top nationally; Springfield’s count of community nonprofits ranks highest.
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 →
22 community nonprofits are registered in Springfield
15.9 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
Community nonprofits, by kind
Counted from the IRS list of tax-exempt organizations by mailing address (fractions where a ZIP code spans towns). Congregations are counted apart (5 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 1 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
12.9%
12.9% of Springfield’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 6.8% in the typical Colorado town and 7.5% nationally.
Volunteering: Social Capital Atlas (Opportunity Insights), from data by Meta Platforms, Inc.; Chetty et al., Nature 2022. ZIP-code figures, weighted by where Springfield’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Baca County Library serves 3,374 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 4 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Baca County Library system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
9,909 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
424 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card.
11 programs a year
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
Springfield Library, 1260 Main Street, Springfield.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Good at every Baca County Library branch.
New in Springfield? 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 $1.97 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Springfield cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $86K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $169K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $86K 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 977 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Springfield Library is one branch of Baca County Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 3,374 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 Springfield
Does Springfield have a public library?
Yes: Springfield Library, 1260 Main Street, is a branch of Baca County Library, which serves 3,374 people. The branch is open about 32 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Baca County Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Springfield’s library?
It logged 4.1 visits and lent 2.9 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Springfield’s civic life grade?
A+ Springfield is among the top 1% of U.S. towns on civic life. The grade combines library visits per resident, community nonprofits per 1,000 residents and the share of adults 25–44 in volunteering groups. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Springfield.
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.