Libraries in Great Barrington
Mason Library serves Great Barrington’s 7,214 residents from 2 locations. Last year it lent 90K books, movies and e-books and logged 66K visits.
What stands out about Great Barrington’s libraries
Read from the library’s own yearly report. The page puts what stands out first.
About 3 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 Great Barrington last year.
Almost half the print loans are kids’ books
90K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 83K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.1 time last year, on average.
Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Every hour the doors are open, about 29 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
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. A tiny town’s library always looks busier per person, so it’s only compared with its own size.
Mason Library serves 7,214 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 2,500 to 10,000.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $2.19 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Great Barrington cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $635K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $1.4M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $635K 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 7,315 cardholders ÷ 12.
2 places to borrow in Great Barrington
Mason Library, 231 Main St., Great Barrington.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in Great Barrington? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Other libraries in Great Barrington
Libraries next door
Great Barrington ranks 3rd of 6 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monterey | Monterey Library fine-free | 13.8 | 31 |
| Stockbridge | Stockbridge Library Association fine-free | 13.7 | 42 |
| Great Barrington | Mason Library fine-free | 12.5 | 51 |
| Housatonic | Ramsdell Public Library fine-free | 12.5 | 10 |
| West Stockbridge | West Stockbridge Public Library fine-free | 7.0 | 28 |
| Egremont | Egremont Free Library fine-free | 1.9 | 14 |
| Alford | Alford Free Public 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.
About these numbers
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Hours are an average. The survey reports a building’s public hours for the whole year. We divide by the weeks it was open, so check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
- Compared by size. “Similar-size” means libraries serving about as many people, nationwide. Per-resident numbers always flatter the smallest towns, so they’re never compared with big cities.
- 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.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Great Barrington.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
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.