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Milford Free Library

Milford’s library lends 8.1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size

Milford Free Library serves Milford’s 367 residents. Last year it lent 3,219 books, movies and e-books and logged 1,579 visits.

64 South Main Street, Milford 13807 · about 20 hours a week
–Civic lifeNot graded: fewer than 1,000 residents
Borrowed a year
3,219
8.8 per resident
Visits a year
1,579
4.3 per resident · Above typical (3.5)
Programs & events
6
about 1 a week · 318 attended
Cardholders
35%
127 cards
Open
20 hrs
a week
In brief

What Milford’s library is like

A small-town library

Milford Free Library serves 367 residents with about one full-time staff. 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 ↓

Open only about 20 hours a week

Milford Free Library keeps short hours: about 20 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓

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.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Milford’s civic life grade

Milford isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.

–
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Milford’s overall grade.

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 →

★ What stands out · What people borrow

Mostly books and media off the shelf

3,219 loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.

3,219loans
Books & media (adults) 72%Kids’ books & media 20%E-books, audio & streaming 8%
How hard the shelves work
0.3×

Each of the 12K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.3 time last year, on average.

From your couch

245 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.

How it compares

Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 5 of 8 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 4.3 visits · typical 3.5Higher than 60%
Borrowing per resident 8.1 print items · typical 3.9Higher than 80%
Digital borrowing 0.7 e-items · typical 1Lower than 59%
Kids’ borrowing 1.8 kids’ items · typical 1.4Higher than 59%
Program attendance 0.9 attendees · typical 0.7Higher than 58%
Programs offered 16.3 per 1,000 residents · typical 60Lower than 81%
Cardholders 35% of residents · typical 54%Lower than 71%
Spending $97 per resident · typical $54Higher than 82%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Milford Free Library serves 367 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 3 items go out

Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.

1,579
visits
4.3 per resident
3,219
loans, print + digital
8.8 per resident
6
programs & events
318 attended
127
library cards
35% of people served
Every open hour3items borrowed
Every week6people at a program
Every day2Wi-Fi sessions
1 staff (full-time equivalent)2 public computers12K books & media on the shelves
Kids & programs

6 programs a year

Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.

Schools in Milford →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–53
Ages 6–112
Teens0
Adults0
All ages1
Little ones
0.1

story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.

655
kids’ books & media borrowed
318
people at programs
6
programs
The building

Find it

Milford Free Library, 64 South Main Street, Milford.

20
hours open a week
690
square feet
12K
books & media
With a card

No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.

New in Milford? The Handbook →

Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.

What your card is worth

For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $1.58 worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Milford cardholder borrows.

In a month I’d use…
Books$17 each
2
Kids’ books$12 each
0
E-books & audio$15 each
0
Movies & music$4 each
0
Programs & classes$10 a program
0
Computer & Wi-Fi$3 a session
0
Your card saves you about
$408
a year at retail prices · $34 a month

Who pays for it
$97 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $36K.

Local taxes 92%State 5%Gifts & other 3%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $56K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $36K 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 127 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.

  • The library’s own count. Libraries report their own visits, loans and programs. A library that didn’t respond keeps its address and hours here, with no numbers.

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 Milford

Does Milford have a public library?

Yes. Milford Free Library, 64 South Main Street, serves Milford’s 367 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 20 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Milford Free 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 Milford’s library?

It logged 4.3 visits and lent 8.8 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.

What is Milford’s civic life grade?

Milford isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more. How it works.

Book talk

Reading, story times and the library in Milford.

Town Square →
Start a conversation

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.