Photo: Daderot · CC BY-SA 3.0Lincoln’s library lends 18 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8 for libraries its size
Lincoln Public Library serves Lincoln’s 6,855 residents. Last year it lent 127K print books and media and logged 56K visits.
Lincoln’s library, in brief
Lincoln uses its library more than almost any town its size
Lincoln Public Library logs 8.1 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, and lends 18 print items per resident against a typical 3.8. On both counts it beats 90% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
Kids borrow more here than almost anywhere
Children’s books and media are 54% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 99% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 41 items per child in Lincoln last year. Kids & programs ↓
Lincoln ranks 7th in Massachusetts for borrowing
Out of 268 Massachusetts towns with a library of their own, Lincoln comes 7th for items borrowed per resident. It’s also #15 for kids’ borrowing. How it compares ↓
Lincoln invests in its library
Lincoln Public Library spends $178 per resident a year, about four times the typical $43 for a library its size. Almost all of it (92%) comes from local taxes. What your card is worth ↓
Three times the programs of a typical library its size
Lincoln Public Library ran 643 programs last year, about 12 a week. That’s 94 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34. People show up: 10,000 attended. 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.
What’s behind Lincoln’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Lincoln is ahead of 97% of U.S. towns, #8 of 283 in Massachusetts. All three inputs are above most U.S. towns; Lincoln’s count of community nonprofits ranks highest.
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 →
69 community nonprofits are registered in Lincoln
9.9 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: education.
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 (5 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 3 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
11.3%
11.3% of Lincoln’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 Lincoln’s residents live; 2022.
About 8 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 Lincoln last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Lincoln Public Library serves 6,855 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 44 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
127K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 87K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.5 time last year, on average.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Lincoln Public Library, Bedford Road, Lincoln.
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 Lincoln? The Handbook →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 $1.56 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Lincoln cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1.2M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.9M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.2M 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 3,668 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Lincoln ranks 4th of 7 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weston | Weston Public Library fine-free | 23.5 | 65 | A− |
| Lexington | Cary Memorial Library fine-free | 20.2 | 63 | A |
| Concord | Concord Free Public Library fine-free | 18.8 | 100 | A+ |
| Lincoln | Lincoln Public Library fine-free | 18.5 | 55 | A+ |
| Bedford | Bedford Free Public Library fine-free | 16.9 | 64 | A |
| Wayland | Wayland Free Public Library fine-free | 13.2 | 62 | A− |
| Waltham | Waltham Public Library fine-free | 6.5 | 64 | 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 Lincoln
Does Lincoln have a public library?
Yes. Lincoln Public Library, Bedford Road, serves Lincoln’s 6,855 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 55 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Lincoln 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 Lincoln’s library?
It logged 8.1 visits and lent 18.5 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Lincoln’s civic life grade?
A+ Lincoln is ahead of 97% of U.S. towns on civic life, #8 of 283 in Massachusetts. 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 Lincoln.
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.