George Thorndike House · Photo: Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0South Thomaston’s library runs 240 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60 for libraries its size
South Thomaston Public Library serves South Thomaston’s 1,532 residents. Last year it lent 2,394 print books and media and logged 9,244 visits.
The short version on South Thomaston’s library
More of a place to be than a place to borrow
Visits per resident beat 75% of similar-size libraries, while borrowing beats only 17%. The building also logs about 1 Wi-Fi sessions a day. A year at the library ↓
Gifts and endowments pay a real share
44% of the library’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 56%. What your card is worth ↓
Four times the programs of a typical library its size
South Thomaston Public Library ran 367 programs last year, about 7 a week. That’s 240 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 60. Kids & programs ↓
A small-town library
South Thomaston Public Library serves 1,532 residents with about one full-time staff, open about 23 hours a week. It’s compared only with libraries serving under 2,500 people, because per-person numbers always look big in a small town. A year at the library ↓
Programs lean toward adults
70% of the 367 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 74 were for children. 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; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind South Thomaston’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, South Thomaston is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns. All three inputs are above most U.S. towns; South Thomaston’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 →
10 community nonprofits are registered in South Thomaston
7.3 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: human services.
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.
8.1%
8.1% of South Thomaston’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 9.0% in the typical Maine 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 South Thomaston’s residents live; 2022.
About 1 kids’ program 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 South Thomaston last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 2 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
South Thomaston Public Library serves 1,532 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
Every hour the doors are open, about 2 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
2,394 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 10K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.2 time last year, on average.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
South Thomaston Public Library, 54 Spruce Head Road, South Thomaston.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in South Thomaston? 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 $7.14 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average South Thomaston cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $5,600.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $40K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $5,600 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 423 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
South Thomaston ranks 4th of 5 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rockland | Rockland Public Library fine-free | 9.8 | 50 | A+ |
| Thomaston | Thomaston Public Library fine-free | 5.0 | 38 | B− |
| St. George | Jackson Memorial Library fine-free | 3.9 | 34 | A+ |
| South Thomaston | South Thomaston Public Library fine-free | 1.6 | 23 | A |
| Cushing | Cushing Public Library fine-free | 1.1 | 20 | D |
| Owls Head | None of its own | — | — | 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.
- Digital loans not reported. The library didn’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 South Thomaston
Does South Thomaston have a public library?
Yes. South Thomaston Public Library, 54 Spruce Head Road, serves South Thomaston’s 1,532 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 23 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is South Thomaston 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 South Thomaston’s library?
It logged 6.0 visits and lent 1.6 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is South Thomaston’s civic life grade?
A South Thomaston is ahead of 86% 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 South Thomaston.
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.