Photo: en:User:LymanSchool (Richard B. Johnson) · CC BY-SA 3.0East Brookfield’s library runs 384 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
East Brookfield Public Library serves East Brookfield’s 2,204 residents. Last year it lent 6,387 print books and media and logged 6,340 visits.
What East Brookfield’s library is like
Six times the programs of a typical library its size
East Brookfield Public Library ran 846 programs last year, about 16 a week. That’s 384 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60. Kids & programs ↓
Every town next door borrows more
East Brookfield’s library lends 2.9 items per resident. Each of the four neighboring towns with a library of its own lends more, led by Sturbridge at 7.5. Libraries next door ↓
A small-town library
East Brookfield Public Library serves 2,204 residents with about one full-time staff, open about 27 hours a week. 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 ↓
Programs lean toward adults
77% of the 846 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 186 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 East Brookfield’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, East Brookfield is ahead of 66% of U.S. towns. East Brookfield’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; library visits pull it down.
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 →
15 community nonprofits are registered in East Brookfield
6.9 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 (2 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
7.9%
7.9% of East Brookfield’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 7.9% in the typical Massachusetts 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 East Brookfield’s residents live; 2022.
About 4 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.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in East Brookfield last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
East Brookfield Public Library serves 2,204 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 5 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
6,387 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 17K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.4 time last year, on average.
Find it
East Brookfield Public Library, 122 Connie Mack Drive, East Brookfield.
No late fees. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in East Brookfield? 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 East Brookfield cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $139K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $124K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $139K 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 621 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
East Brookfield ranks 5th of 5 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sturbridge | Joshua Hyde Public Library fine-free | 7.5 | 50 | B+ |
| Brookfield | Merrick Public Library fine-free | 7.0 | 27 | B+ |
| Charlton | Charlton Public Library fine-free | 7.0 | 46 | B |
| North Brookfield | Haston Free Public Library fine-free | 3.4 | 30 | B |
| East Brookfield | East Brookfield Public Library fine-free | 2.9 | 27 | 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.
- Digital loans not reported. Massachusetts libraries often don’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 East Brookfield
Does East Brookfield have a public library?
Yes. East Brookfield Public Library, 122 Connie Mack Drive, serves East Brookfield’s 2,204 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 27 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is East Brookfield Public Library fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is East Brookfield’s library?
It logged 2.9 visits and lent 2.9 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is East Brookfield’s civic life grade?
B+ East Brookfield is ahead of 66% 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 East Brookfield.
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.