Photo: Linkracer at English Wikipedia · Public domainRupert’s library logs 1 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries its size
R.K. Kittay Public serves Rupert’s 578 residents. Last year it lent 555 print books and media and logged 558 visits.
Rupert’s library, in brief
Mostly paid for by gifts, not taxes
82% of the library’s income comes from gifts, endowments, fees and other sources, not taxes. Local taxes cover 15%. What your card is worth ↓
R.K. Kittay Public is used less than most libraries its size
R.K. Kittay Public records 1 visits per resident, against a typical 3.5 for libraries serving under 2,500 people. Borrowing is 1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9. It also spends less than most: $31 per resident, against a typical $54. How it compares ↓
Open only about 15 hours a week
R.K. Kittay Public keeps short hours: about 15 a week, averaged over the year, so check its schedule before you go. Dorset Village Public in Dorset, next door, is open about 35 hours a week. The building ↓
A small-town library
R.K. Kittay Public serves 578 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 ↓
Few programs for a library this size
R.K. Kittay Public offered 4 programs last year, 6.9 per 1,000 residents against a typical 60. 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; in a town this small, one busy program or a few avid readers move the per-resident numbers.
What’s behind Rupert’s civic life grade
Rupert 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 →
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 1 of 6 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.
R.K. Kittay Public serves 578 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
A year at R.K. Kittay Public
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
Books and media off the shelf
555 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
The survey has no count of children’s loans for Rupert’s library in 2024, so there’s no split between adults’ and kids’ borrowing.
Each of the 4,248 books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.1 time last year, on average.
4 programs a year
Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
Find it
R.K. Kittay Public, 2827 Rte. 153, W. Rupert.
No late fees. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Rupert? 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 Rupert cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $18K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $11K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $18K 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 515 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
Rupert ranks 3rd of 3 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
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 Rupert
Does Rupert have a public library?
Yes. R.K. Kittay Public, 2827 Rte. 153, serves Rupert’s 578 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 15 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is R.K. Kittay Public fine-free?
Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Rupert’s library?
It logged 1.0 visits and lent 1.0 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.
What is Rupert’s civic life grade?
Rupert 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 Rupert.
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.