Hydeville School · Photo: Doug Kerr · CC BY-SA 2.0Castleton’s library lends 1.6 print items per resident, against a typical 3.8 for libraries its size
Castleton Free Library serves Castleton’s 5,309 residents. Last year it lent 8,615 print books and media and logged 8,054 visits.
Castleton’s library, in brief
Vermont pays a big share
32% of the budget comes from the state, and 33% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
Below typical on every measure
Against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people, Castleton Free Library sits below the middle on all six per-resident measures we compare, and in the bottom 30% on three. How it compares ↓
A big collection for the borrowing it gets
Castleton Free Library holds 20,000 books and other items, but the average item went out less than once last year. What people borrow ↓
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.
What’s behind Castleton’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, Castleton is ahead of 38% of U.S. towns, #60 of 71 in Vermont. Castleton’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; library visits pull it down.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($55K–$92K) 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 →
25 community nonprofits are registered in Castleton
5.7 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 (2 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
6.8%
6.8% of Castleton’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.5% in the typical Vermont 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 Castleton’s residents live; 2022.
Below most similar-size libraries on all 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Castleton Free Library serves 5,309 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 6 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
8,615 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Each of the 20K books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.4 time last year, on average.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 2 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in Castleton last year.
Find it
Castleton Free Library, 638 Main St., Castleton.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Castleton? 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 Castleton cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $152K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $150K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $152K 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 1,720 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Castleton ranks 3rd of 4 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poultney | Poultney Public fine-free | 8.5 | 38 | A |
| Fair Haven | Fair Haven Free Library fine-free | 2.6 | 27 | B |
| Castleton | Castleton Free Library fine-free | 1.6 | 28 | C+ |
| Benson | Benson Public fine-free | 0.8 | 10 | — under 1,000 residents |
| Ira | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Hubbardton | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
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. Vermont libraries often don’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.
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 Castleton
Does Castleton have a public library?
Yes. Castleton Free Library, 638 Main St., serves Castleton’s 5,309 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 28 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Castleton 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 Castleton’s library?
It logged 1.5 visits and lent 1.6 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Castleton’s civic life grade?
C+ Castleton is ahead of 38% of U.S. towns on civic life, #60 of 71 in Vermont. 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 Castleton.
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.