Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 4.0Walsh’s library is a branch of Baca County Library, which lends less per resident than 65% of systems its size
Walsh’s library is the Walsh Public Library, a branch of Baca County Library, which serves 3,374 people and lent 9,909 items last year.
The short version on Walsh’s library
Open only about 8 hours a week
The Walsh branch keeps short hours: about 8 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
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; Walsh’s library is a branch of Baca County Library, so they cover the whole system (3,374 people), not just the Walsh branch.
What’s behind Walsh’s civic life grade
Walsh 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 →
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
Walsh Public Library, 403 N. Colorado, Walsh.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Good at every Baca County Library branch.
New in Walsh? 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 Walsh 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. Walsh Public 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 Walsh
Does Walsh have a public library?
Yes: Walsh Public Library, 403 N. Colorado, is a branch of Baca County Library, which serves 3,374 people. The branch is open about 8 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 Walsh’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 Walsh’s civic life grade?
Walsh 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 Walsh.
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.