Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 3.0Westford’s library logs 9.4 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries its size
J. V. Fletcher Library serves Westford’s 24,353 residents. Last year it lent 314K print books and media and logged 230K visits.
What Westford’s library is like
Westford uses its library more than almost any town its size
J. V. Fletcher Library logs 9.4 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people, and lends 13 print items per resident against a typical 3.9. On both counts it beats 95% 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 96% of similar-size libraries. That works out to about 27 items per child in Westford last year. Kids & programs ↓
Top 10% in Massachusetts for library use
Westford ranks #24 of 263 Massachusetts towns with a library of their own for visits per resident. That’s 9.4 visits per resident, more than at 96% of similar-size libraries nationwide. How it compares ↓
Nearly everyone in Westford has a card
20,676 cards for 24,353 people, or 85%. At the typical library serving 10,000 to 25,000 people, it’s 40%. How it compares ↓
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 Westford’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Westford is ahead of 87% of U.S. towns, #51 of 283 in Massachusetts. All three inputs are above most U.S. towns; library visits rank 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 →
108 community nonprofits are registered in Westford
4.4 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 (12 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.
9.6%
9.6% of Westford’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 Westford’s residents live; 2022.
Every hour the doors are open, about 115 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 6 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
J. V. Fletcher Library serves 24,353 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
314K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 107K books and other items on the shelves went out about 2.9 times last year, on average.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 6 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 Westford last year.
Find it
J. V. Fletcher Library, 50 Main St., Westford.
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 Westford? 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 $2.56 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Westford cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1.8M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $4.7M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.8M 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 20,676 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Westford ranks 5th of 7 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carlisle | Gleason Public Library fine-free | 16.7 | 52 | A+ |
| Littleton | Reuben Hoar Library fine-free | 15.8 | 46 | A |
| Acton | Acton Memorial Library fine-free | 15.0 | 87 | A |
| Groton | Groton Public Library fine-free | 14.6 | 50 | A− |
| Westford | J. V. Fletcher Library fine-free | 12.9 | 53 | A |
| Chelmsford | Chelmsford Public Library fine-free | 10.9 | 72 | A− |
| Tyngsborough | Tyngsborough Public Library fine-free | 5.9 | 37 | 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.
- Visits are a typical-week estimate. J. V. Fletcher Library counted one typical week and multiplied by 52, as the survey allows.
- 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 Westford
Does Westford have a public library?
Yes. J. V. Fletcher Library, 50 Main St., serves Westford’s 24,353 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 53 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is J. V. Fletcher 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 Westford’s library?
It logged 9.4 visits and lent 12.9 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Westford’s civic life grade?
A Westford is ahead of 87% of U.S. towns on civic life, #51 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 Westford.
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.