Photo: liz west from Boxborough, MA, USA · CC BY 2.0East Dennis’ library lends 23 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size
Jacob Sears Memorial Library serves 1,120 people in and around East Dennis. Last year it lent 26K print books and media and logged 3,000 visits.
East Dennis’s library, in brief
More library cards than residents
3,600 cards for 1,120 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 ↓
Open about 95 hours a week
Jacob Sears Memorial Library is open about 95 hours a week, averaged over the year. The building ↓
Mostly paid for by gifts, not taxes
51% of the library’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 44%. What your card is worth ↓
People borrow more than they stay
Borrowing per resident is higher than at 98% of similar-size libraries, but visits are lower than at 63%. People come in, pick up their books and go. How it compares ↓
A small-town library
Jacob Sears Memorial Library serves 1,120 residents with about one full-time staff, open about 95 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 ↓
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 Dennis’ civic life grade
East Dennis 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
26K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 16K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.7 times last year, on average.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 4 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
Jacob Sears Memorial Library serves 1,120 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.
13 programs a year
Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
A National Register landmark since 2009
Jacob Sears Memorial Library, 23 Center St., East Dennis.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in East Dennis? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Jacob Sears Memorial Library
Sears, Jacob, Memorial Library was added to the National Register of Historic Places on Nov 18, 2009. It is significant for its architecture and education at the local level. Its architecture is described as Victorian and Shingle style.
The Jacob Sears Library is one of the five public libraries of Dennis, Massachusetts. It is located at 23 Center Street in East Dennis, in a building funded by a bequest from Jacob Sears, a longtime East Dennis resident. The Shingle style structure was built in 1895 to a design by the Boston firm of Rand & Taylor. The library building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009.
More about the building →For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $3.91 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average East Dennis cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $114K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $445K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $114K 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 3,600 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
East Dennis ranks 2nd of 3 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dennis | Dennis Memorial Library Assoc. fine-free | 31.1 | 34 | B+ |
| East Dennis | Jacob Sears Memorial Library fine-free | 23.5 | 95 | — graded as part of its town |
| Brewster | Brewster Ladies' Library fine-free | 13.8 | 40 | A |
| South Dennis | None of its own | — | — | — graded as part of its town |
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 Dennis
Does East Dennis have a public library?
Yes. Jacob Sears Memorial Library, 23 Center St., serves 1,120 people in and around East Dennis (the survey’s count) and is open about 95 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Jacob Sears Memorial 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 East Dennis’ library?
It logged 2.7 visits and lent 23.5 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is East Dennis’ civic life grade?
East Dennis 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 East Dennis.
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. Building history: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places; photo via Wikimedia Commons. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.