Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 3.0West Stockbridge’s library lends 7 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size
West Stockbridge Public Library serves West Stockbridge’s 1,329 residents. Last year it lent 9,262 print books and media and logged 4,977 visits.
What stands out about West Stockbridge’s library
Read from the library’s own yearly report. The page puts what stands out first.
What’s behind West Stockbridge’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, West Stockbridge is ahead of 89% of U.S. towns. All three inputs are above most U.S. towns; West Stockbridge’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 →
19 community nonprofits are registered in West Stockbridge
15.0 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: arts & culture.
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 (0 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
10.5%
10.5% of West Stockbridge’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 West Stockbridge’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
West Stockbridge Public Library serves 1,329 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 6 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
9,262 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 9,937 books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.9 time last year, on average.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
33 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.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in West Stockbridge last year.
Find it
West Stockbridge Public Library, 21 Stateline Rd., West Stockbridge.
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 West Stockbridge? 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 $2.41 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average West Stockbridge cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $63K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $153K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $63K 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 561 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
West Stockbridge ranks 3rd of 3 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stockbridge | Stockbridge Library Association fine-free | 13.7 | 42 | A+ |
| Great Barrington | Mason Library fine-free | 12.5 | 51 | A |
| West Stockbridge | West Stockbridge Public Library fine-free | 7.0 | 28 | A |
| Alford | Alford Free Public Library | — | — | — 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. 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 West Stockbridge
Does West Stockbridge have a public library?
Yes. West Stockbridge Public Library, 21 Stateline Rd., serves West Stockbridge’s 1,329 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 28 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is West Stockbridge 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 West Stockbridge’s library?
It logged 3.7 visits and lent 7.0 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is West Stockbridge’s civic life grade?
A West Stockbridge is ahead of 89% 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 West Stockbridge.
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.