German Presbyterian Church and Hortonville Cemetery · Photo: Vonsky87 · CC BY-SA 3.0Delaware’s library is a branch of Western Sullivan Public Library, which lends more per resident than 62% of systems its size
Delaware’s library is the Western Sullivan P L - Delaware Free Library, a branch of Western Sullivan Public Library, which serves 9,794 people and lent 48K items last year.
Delaware’s library, in brief
Programs lean toward adults
65% of the 346 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 52 were for children. Kids & programs ↓
A well-funded system
The Western Sullivan Public Library system spends $97 per resident a year, about twice the typical $43 for a library its size. Almost all of it (95%) comes from local taxes. What your card is worth ↓
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; Delaware’s library is a branch of Western Sullivan Public Library, so they cover the whole system (9,794 people), not just the Delaware branch.
What’s behind Delaware’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Delaware is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns. Delaware is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Delaware’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 →
18 community nonprofits are registered in Delaware
7.7 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 (6 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
8.1%
8.1% of Delaware’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 7.4% in the typical New York 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 Delaware’s residents live; 2022.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Delaware cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $951K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $913K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $951K 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 3,867 cardholders ÷ 12.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 4 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Western Sullivan Public Library serves 9,794 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 8 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Western Sullivan Public Library system. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
48K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 1 kids’ program a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
Find it
Western Sullivan P L - Delaware Free Library, 45 Lower Main Street, Callicoon.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Western Sullivan Public Library branch.
New in Delaware? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Libraries next door
Who has a library of their own, and how much each town borrows. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delaware | Western Sullivan P L - Delaware Free Library fine-free | — | 38 | A− |
| Callicoon | Western Sullivan P L - Jeffersonville fine-free | — | 40 | A− |
| Jeffersonville | Western Sullivan P L - Jeffersonville fine-free | — | 40 | — under 1,000 residents |
| Damascus Township | None of its own | — | — | A |
| Manchester Township | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Cochecton | None of its own | — | — | B |
| Fremont | None of its own | — | — | — too few inputs |
| Bethel | None of its own | — | — | — too few inputs |
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. New York libraries often don’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
- System-wide. Western Sullivan P L - Delaware Free Library is one branch of Western Sullivan Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 9,794 people it serves.
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 Delaware
Does Delaware have a public library?
Yes: Western Sullivan P L - Delaware Free Library, 45 Lower Main Street, is a branch of Western Sullivan Public Library, which serves 9,794 people. The branch is open about 38 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Western Sullivan 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 Delaware’s library?
It logged 3.2 visits and lent 4.9 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Delaware’s civic life grade?
A− Delaware is ahead of 84% 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 Delaware.
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.