Arms Library
Arms Library serves 943 people in and around Shelburne Falls. Last year it lent 24K books, movies and e-books and logged 10K visits.
What stands out about Arms Library
Read from the library’s own yearly report. The page puts what stands out first.
Mostly books and media off the shelf
24K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 16K books and other items on the shelves went out about 1.5 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 18 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
40 programs a year
Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 5 of 7 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S. A tiny town’s library always looks busier per person, so it’s only compared with its own size.
library systems for visits per resident.
Arms Library serves 943 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $3.79 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Shelburne Falls cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $105K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $397K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $105K 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 1,234 cardholders ÷ 12.
Find it
Arms Library, 60 Bridge St., Shelburne Falls.
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 Shelburne Falls? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
Libraries next door
Shelburne Falls borrows the most per resident of the 4 towns here. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shelburne Falls | Arms Library fine-free | 25.1 | 25 |
| Shelburne | Shelburne Free Public Library | 7.3 | 13 |
| Buckland | Buckland Public Library fine-free | 7.1 | 14 |
| Charlemont | Tyler Memorial Library fine-free | 1.5 | 12 |
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 Shelburne Falls.
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.