Photo: Srodegast · Public domainWest Tisbury’s library logs 27 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries its size
West Tisbury Free Public Library serves West Tisbury’s 3,594 residents. Last year it lent 124K print books and media and logged 97K visits.
West Tisbury’s library, in brief
More library cards than residents
4,930 cards for 3,594 people. Cards held by people from outside the service area count too, so the total can pass the population. At the typical library serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, it’s 42%. How it compares ↓
West Tisbury borrows more library books per person than any town in Massachusetts
Out of 268 Massachusetts towns with a library of their own, West Tisbury comes first for items borrowed per resident. It’s also #1 for kids’ borrowing and #2 for library use. How it compares ↓
West Tisbury uses its library more than almost any town its size
West Tisbury Free Public Library logs 27 visits per resident, against a typical 3 for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, and lends 35 print items per resident against a typical 3.8. On both counts it beats 99% of similar-size libraries across the U.S. How it compares ↓
21 times the programs of a typical library its size
West Tisbury Free Public Library ran 2,563 programs last year, about 49 a week. That’s 713 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 34. People show up: 27,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
Kids borrow more here than almost anywhere
Children’s books and media are 50% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 99% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 134 items per child in West Tisbury last year. 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 West Tisbury’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, West Tisbury is ahead of 98% of U.S. towns, #5 of 283 in Massachusetts. All three inputs are above most U.S. towns; library visits rank highest.
West Tisbury Free Public Library logged 26.9 visits per resident in FY2024, #13 of the 3,790 town libraries we compare. The survey counts every visit, residents or not, and libraries don’t report how many come from out of town.
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 →
30 community nonprofits are registered in West Tisbury
9.6 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. 2 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
10.9%
10.9% of West Tisbury’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 Tisbury’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 West Tisbury 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.
West Tisbury Free Public Library serves 3,594 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 47 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
124K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 48K books and other items on the shelves went out about 2.6 times last year, on average.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
West Tisbury Free Public Library, 1042 State Rd., West Tisbury.
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 Tisbury? 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 $1.83 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average West Tisbury cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1.4M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $2.6M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.4M 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 4,930 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
West Tisbury borrows the most per resident of the 5 towns here. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Tisbury | West Tisbury Free Public Library fine-free | 34.6 | 51 | A+ |
| Gosnold | Cuttyhunk Public Library fine-free | 24.3 | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Chilmark | Chilmark Free Public Library fine-free | 17.2 | 29 | B+ |
| Tisbury | Vineyard Haven Public Library fine-free | 14.3 | 44 | A+ |
| Edgartown | Edgartown Free Public Library fine-free | 12.7 | 42 | A+ |
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.
- Visits count everyone. West Tisbury’s 96,622 visits include people from nearby towns and summer visitors; the survey has no resident share.
- 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 Tisbury
Does West Tisbury have a public library?
Yes. West Tisbury Free Public Library, 1042 State Rd., serves West Tisbury’s 3,594 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 51 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is West Tisbury Free 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 Tisbury’s library?
It logged 26.9 visits and lent 34.6 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people. Its visits per resident rank #13 of the 3,790 town libraries we compare.
What is West Tisbury’s civic life grade?
A+ West Tisbury is ahead of 98% of U.S. towns on civic life, #5 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 West Tisbury.
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.