Grace Episcopal Church · Photo: Doug Kerr · CC BY-SA 2.0Middletown’s library is a branch of Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Wallkill, which lends less per resident than 78% of systems its size
Middletown’s library is the Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Walkill, a branch of Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Wallkill, which serves 59,174 people and lent 141K items last year.
Middletown’s library, in brief
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, the Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Wallkill system sits below the middle on all seven per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on six. How it compares ↓
Few programs for a library this size
The Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Wallkill system offered 199 programs last year, 3.4 per 1,000 residents against a typical 14. Kids & programs ↓
Few residents carry a card
Only 19% of the people the system serves have a library card, against a typical 39% for its size. How it compares ↓
Programs lean toward adults
70% of the 199 programs last year were for adults: classes, talks, clubs and events. 47 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; Middletown’s library is a branch of Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Wallkill, so they cover the whole system (59,174 people), not just the Middletown branch.
What’s behind Middletown’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Middletown is ahead of 33% of U.S. towns, #521 of 751 in New York. Middletown is graded on two of the three inputs. Middletown’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups pulls it down.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($60K–$99K) 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 →
150 community nonprofits are registered in Middletown
5.0 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 (52 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 10 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
4.4%
4.4% of Middletown’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 Middletown’s residents live; 2022.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Wallkill serves 59,174 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 45 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Wallkill system. The library’s own count.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
141K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
43,243 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
199 programs a year
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
Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Walkill, 11-19 Depot Street, Middletown.
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 Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Wallkill branch.
New in Middletown? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
What a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Middletown cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $3.9M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $2.2M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $3.9M 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 11,149 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Middletown | Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Walkill fine-free | — | 61 | C |
| Wallkill | None of its own | — | — | D− |
| Washington Heights | None of its own | — | — | — graded as part of its town |
| Mechanicstown | None of its own | — | — | — graded as part of its town |
| Wawayanda | None of its own | — | — | C− |
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. Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Walkill is one branch of Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Wallkill, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 59,174 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 Middletown
Does Middletown have a public library?
Yes: Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Walkill, 11-19 Depot Street, is a branch of Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Wallkill, which serves 59,174 people. The branch is open about 61 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Thrall Public Library District of Middletown and Wallkill 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 Middletown’s library?
It logged 1.2 visits and lent 2.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Middletown’s civic life grade?
C Middletown is ahead of 33% of U.S. towns on civic life, #521 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 Middletown.
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.