Photo: Chris Flook · CC BY-SA 4.0Dublin’s library runs 118 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
Dublin Public Library serves 679 people in and around Dublin. Last year it lent 463 print books and media and logged 1,408 visits.
The short version on Dublin’s library
A small-town library
Dublin Public Library serves 679 residents with about one full-time staff. It’s compared only with libraries serving under 2,500 people, because per-person numbers always look big in a small town. A year at the library ↓
Open only about 20 hours a week
Dublin Public Library keeps short hours: about 20 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 18% of the people Dublin Public Library serves have a library card, against a typical 54% for its size. How it compares ↓
People visit, but borrow less than most
Dublin Public Library lends 0.7 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries serving under 2,500 people, fewer than 95% of similar-size libraries, though visits are closer to typical. What people borrow ↓
Programs lean toward adults
63% of the 80 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 19 were for children. Kids & programs ↓
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 Dublin’s civic life grade
Dublin 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 2 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Dublin Public Library serves 679 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
A year at Dublin Public Library
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
463 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 9,954 books and other items on the shelves went out about 0 time last year, on average.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
80 programs a year
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
Dublin Public Library, 2249 East Cumberland Street, Dublin.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Dublin? 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 Dublin cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $38K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $16K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $38K 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 120 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Who has a library of their own, and how much each town borrows. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dublin | Dublin Public Library fine-free | 0.7 | 20 | — under 1,000 residents |
| Mount Auburn | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
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.
- 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 Dublin
Does Dublin have a public library?
Yes. Dublin Public Library, 2249 East Cumberland Street, serves 679 people in and around Dublin (the survey’s count) and is open about 20 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Dublin 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 Dublin’s library?
It logged 2.1 visits and lent 0.7 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Dublin’s civic life grade?
Dublin 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 Dublin.
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.