Photo: Finetooth · CC BY-SA 3.0Haines’ library is a branch of Baker County Library District, which lends more per resident than 64% of systems its size
Haines’s library is the Haines Branch Library, a branch of Baker County Library District, which serves 16,927 people and lent 88K items last year.
What Haines’s library is like
Open only about 15 hours a week
The Haines branch keeps short hours: about 15 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. The building ↓
Most programs are for young children
78% of the 184 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 1.7 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
A well-funded system
The Baker County Library District system spends $86 per resident a year, about twice the typical $43 for a library its size. Almost all of it (93%) 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; Haines’s library is a branch of Baker County Library District, so they cover the whole system (16,927 people), not just the Haines branch.
What’s behind Haines’ civic life grade
Haines isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.
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 a library card is worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Haines cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $1.5M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.4M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $1.5M budget.
Late fines apply to some overdue items.
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 7,154 cardholders ÷ 12.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 4 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
Baker County Library District serves 16,927 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 12 items go out
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Baker County Library District system. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
88K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
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
Haines Branch Library, 818 Cole St., Haines.
Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Baker County Library District branch.
New in Haines? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
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.
- System-wide. Haines Branch Library is one branch of Baker County Library District, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 16,927 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 Haines
Does Haines have a public library?
Yes: Haines Branch Library, 818 Cole St., is a branch of Baker County Library District, which serves 16,927 people. The branch is open about 15 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Baker County Library District fine-free?
It charges late fines on some overdue items (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Haines’ library?
It logged 5.2 visits and lent 5.2 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is Haines’ civic life grade?
Haines 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 Haines.
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.