Photo: Jared Winkler · CC BY-SA 4.0Upton’s library is a branch of Weston County Library System, which lends less per resident than 59% of systems its size
Upton’s library is the Upton Branch Library, a branch of Weston County Library System, which serves 6,808 people and lent 22K items last year.
What stands out about Upton Branch Library
Read from the library’s own yearly report. The page puts what stands out first.
What’s behind Upton’s civic life grade
Upton 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 5 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people across the U.S.
Weston County Library System serves 6,808 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, for the whole Weston County Library System system. The library’s own count.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
22K print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
About 4 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
Upton Branch Library, 722 4th St., Upton.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Weston County Library System branch.
New in Upton? 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 Upton cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $366K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $358K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $366K 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 2,863 cardholders ÷ 12.
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. Upton Branch Library is one branch of Weston County Library System, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 6,808 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 Upton
Does Upton have a public library?
Yes: Upton Branch Library, 722 4th St., is a branch of Weston County Library System, which serves 6,808 people. The branch is open about 25 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Weston County Library System 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 Upton’s library?
It logged 3.8 visits and lent 3.2 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3 visits for libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000 people.
What is Upton’s civic life grade?
Upton 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 Upton.
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.