Photo: John Phelan · CC BY-SA 4.0Chester Center’s library runs 46 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34 for libraries its size
Chester Public Library serves 3,761 people in and around Chester Center. Last year it lent 14K books, movies and e-books and logged 7,238 visits.
What stands out about Chester Center’s library
Read from the library’s own yearly report. The page puts what stands out first.
What’s behind Chester Center’s civic life grade
Chester Center 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 3 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Chester Public Library serves 3,761 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 7 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
14K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 15K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.6 time last year, on average.
5,344 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, 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
Chester Public Library, 21 West Main Street, Chester.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Chester Center? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Chester Center cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $240K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $239K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $240K 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 1,388 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Chester Center ranks 3rd of 4 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deep River | Deep River Public Library | 4.7 | 42 | A− |
| Deep River Center | Deep River Public Library | 4.7 | 42 | — graded as part of its town |
| Chester Center | Chester Public Library fine-free | 3.8 | 42 | — graded as part of its town |
| Chester | Chester Public Library fine-free | 3.8 | 42 | B− |
Loans = print + digital items borrowed in the library’s fiscal year, per person it serves. — = no library of its own, a county or regional system (its numbers cover many towns), or no report. Civic life: — = not graded (unincorporated places, whose nonprofits can’t be placed by mailing address, or towns with fewer than two of the three inputs).
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- The library’s own count. Libraries report their own visits, loans and programs. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.
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 Chester Center
Does Chester Center have a public library?
Yes. Chester Public Library, 21 West Main Street, serves 3,761 people in and around Chester Center (the survey’s count) and is open about 42 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Chester Public 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 Chester Center’s library?
It logged 1.9 visits and lent 3.8 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Chester Center’s civic life grade?
Chester Center 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 Chester Center.
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.