Harpers Ferry’s library lends 11 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size
Dolores Tillinghast Memorial Library serves Harpers Ferry’s 855 residents. Last year it lent 9,500 print books and media and logged 812 visits.
The short version on Harpers Ferry’s library
More library cards than residents
1,215 cards for 855 people. Cards held by people from outside the service area count too, so the total can pass the population. At the typical library serving under 2,500 people, it’s 54%. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
Dolores Tillinghast Memorial Library offered 0 programs last year, 0 per 1,000 residents against a typical 60. Kids & programs ↓
People borrow more than they stay
Borrowing per resident is higher than at 89% of similar-size libraries, but visits are lower than at 92%. People come in, pick up their books and go. How it compares ↓
Open only about 12 hours a week
Dolores Tillinghast Memorial Library keeps short hours: about 12 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Gifts and endowments pay a real share
41% of the library’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 59%. 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; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Harpers Ferry’s civic life grade
Harpers Ferry 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 →
Books and media off the shelf
9,500 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 7,421 books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.3 time last year, on average.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 2 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Dolores Tillinghast Memorial Library serves 855 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 15 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
What kids borrow
Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.
Find it
Dolores Tillinghast Memorial Library, 234 N 4th St., Harpers Ferry.
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 $6.57 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Harpers Ferry cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $25K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $164K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $25K 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 1,215 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Digital loans not reported. The library didn’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
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 Harpers Ferry
Does Harpers Ferry have a public library?
Yes. Dolores Tillinghast Memorial Library, 234 N 4th St., serves Harpers Ferry’s 855 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 12 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Dolores Tillinghast Memorial Library fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Harpers Ferry’s library?
It logged 0.9 visits and lent 11.1 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Harpers Ferry’s civic life grade?
Harpers Ferry 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 Harpers Ferry.
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.