Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 3.0Norfolk’s library runs 34 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 14 for libraries its size
Franklin Public Library serves Norfolk’s 33,656 residents. Last year it lent 271K print books and media and logged 124K visits.
Norfolk’s library, in brief
More than half the print loans are for kids
Children’s books and media are 57% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 89% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 55 items per child in Norfolk last year. Kids & programs ↓
Still charges late fines, unlike its neighbors
Franklin Public Library charges late fines on some overdue items. Five of the seven libraries in neighboring towns have dropped them. What your card is worth ↓
Twice the programs of a typical library its size
Franklin Public Library ran 1,158 programs last year, about 22 a week. That’s 34 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 14. People show up: 45,000 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 Norfolk’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Norfolk is ahead of 73% of U.S. towns, #95 of 283 in Massachusetts. The share of younger adults in volunteering groups holds the grade up; Norfolk’s count of community nonprofits pulls 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 →
39 community nonprofits are registered in Norfolk
3.3 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: civic groups, clubs & veterans.
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 (4 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 1 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
10.0%
10.0% of Norfolk’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 Norfolk’s residents live; 2022.
About 12 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 Norfolk last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 6 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Franklin Public Library serves 33,656 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 87 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
271K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 102K books and other items on the shelves went out about 2.7 times last year, on average.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
2 places to borrow in Norfolk
Franklin Public Library, 118 Main Street, Franklin.
E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Norfolk? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Other libraries in Norfolk
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $3.84 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Norfolk cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $1.1M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $4.4M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.1M budget.
Late fines apply to some overdue items.
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 13,933 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Norfolk ranks 4th of 8 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Millis | Millis Public Library fine-free | 14.8 | 52 | B |
| Millis-Clicquot | Millis Public Library fine-free | 14.8 | 52 | — graded as part of its town |
| Medfield | Medfield Memorial Library fine-free | 11.1 | 51 | A− |
| Norfolk | Franklin Public Library | 8.1 | 60 | B+ |
| Franklin Town | Franklin Public Library | 8.1 | 60 | A− |
| Medway | Medway Public Library fine-free | 7.4 | 44 | A− |
| Walpole | Walpole Public Library | 6.3 | 55 | A |
| Wrentham | Fiske Public Library fine-free | 3.6 | 41 | C− |
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 Norfolk
Does Norfolk have a public library?
Yes. Franklin Public Library, 118 Main Street, serves Norfolk’s 33,656 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 60 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Franklin Public Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
It charges late fines on some overdue items, and it lends e-books and audiobooks with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Norfolk’s library?
It logged 3.7 visits and lent 8.1 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Norfolk’s civic life grade?
B+ Norfolk is ahead of 73% of U.S. towns on civic life, #95 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 Norfolk.
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.