Photo: Dclemens1971 · CC BY 4.0Kingsbury’s library is a branch of Hudson Falls Free Library Association, which lends less per resident than 93% of systems its size
Kingsbury’s library is the Hudson Falls Free Library, a branch of Hudson Falls Free Library Association, which serves 15,658 people and lent 21K items last year.
What Kingsbury’s library is like
The Hudson Falls Free Library Association system is used less than most libraries its size
The Hudson Falls Free Library Association system records 0.6 visits per resident, against a typical 3.1 for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people. Borrowing is 0.8 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9. It also spends less than most: $9 per resident, against a typical $43. How it compares ↓
Most programs are for young children
68% of the 240 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 1.1 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Runs on less money than most
The Hudson Falls Free Library Association system spends $9 per resident, less than 97% of similar-size libraries (typical: $43). 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; Kingsbury’s library is a branch of Hudson Falls Free Library Association, so they cover the whole system (15,658 people), not just the Kingsbury branch.
What’s behind Kingsbury’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Kingsbury is ahead of 32% of U.S. towns, #533 of 751 in New York. The share of younger adults in volunteering groups holds the grade up; library visits pull it down.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($54K–$90K) score higher, so income alone doesn’t account for it.
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 →
40 community nonprofits are registered in Kingsbury
3.1 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 (6 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
10.3%
10.3% of Kingsbury’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 Kingsbury’s residents live; 2022.
Below most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Hudson Falls Free Library Association serves 15,658 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 10 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Hudson Falls Free Library Association system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
21K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
8,418 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 3 kids’ programs 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
Hudson Falls Free Library, 220 Main Street, Hudson Falls.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Hudson Falls Free Library Association branch.
New in Kingsbury? 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 $2.50 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Kingsbury cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $140K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $351K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $140K 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 3,645 cardholders ÷ 12.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argyle | Argyle Free Library fine-free | 3.4 | 28 | B− |
| Fort Edward | Fort Edward Free Library fine-free | 1.3 | 30 | B |
| Kingsbury | Hudson Falls Free Library fine-free | — | 40 | C |
| Hudson Falls | Hudson Falls Free Library fine-free | — | 40 | A |
| Queensbury | None of its own | — | — | B |
| Fort Ann | None of its own | — | — | B |
| Hartford | None of its own | — | — | A− |
| Moreau | None of its own | — | — | 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.
- System-wide. Hudson Falls Free Library is one branch of Hudson Falls Free Library Association, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 15,658 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 Kingsbury
Does Kingsbury have a public library?
Yes: Hudson Falls Free Library, 220 Main Street, is a branch of Hudson Falls Free Library Association, which serves 15,658 people. The branch is open about 40 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Hudson Falls Free Library Association 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 Kingsbury’s library?
It logged 0.6 visits and lent 1.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Kingsbury’s civic life grade?
C Kingsbury is ahead of 32% of U.S. towns on civic life, #533 of 751 in New York. 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 Kingsbury.
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.