Dorchester County Public Library
Dorchester County Public Library is a county public library system based in Cambridge (Dorchester County), Maryland, serving a legal service area of 32,489 residents through two library buildings. Among the 24 profiled systems in Maryland, it ranks last for visits per resident and last for physical checkouts per resident and records the steepest decline in visits since FY 2019.
By population served it is the 21st-largest of the 24 profiled systems in Maryland. Against the median system of its size class, it records 31% fewer print volumes per resident and 41% more public computers per resident.
Dorchester County against the 964 systems of its size class
Dorchester County since FY 2019
Visits were 74% below the FY 2019 count of 93,696 (size-class median: −28%). Physical checkouts moved 52% down over the same span.
- Visits
- Physical checkouts
Who comes to Dorchester County programs
Programs for children up to age 11 drew 85% of all program attendance, and sessions averaged 36 people each.
Dorchester County in numbers, FY 2024
- Visits
- 24,180
- Physical checkouts
- 56,325
- …of children's materials
- 36,322
- Electronic checkouts
- 19,532
- …of e-books
- 9,214
- …of e-audio
- 8,206
- Registered users
- 15,045
- Program sessions
- 415
- Program attendance
- 15,029
- Print volumes
- 47,993
- Audio items (physical)
- 512
- Video items (physical)
- 4,902
- Public computers
- 30
- Public service hours, all outlets
- 3,548
- Paid staff (full-time equivalent)
- 13.1
- Operating spending
- $1.2 million
- …on books and other materials
- $89,714
- Overdue fines on print items
- not charged
Where Dorchester County gets its operating money
Operating revenue came to $1.2 million, or $36.49 per resident. The local-government share sits 21 percentage points below the combined share for the 24 profiled systems in Maryland. Federal money made up 1.7% of the total.
- Local government
- State
- Federal
- Other (fines, fees, gifts, grants)
Dorchester County, building by building
The two buildings cover 19,568 square feet in total, 0.60 square feet per resident against a median of 0.74 for the size class. The largest building is Cambridge Branch at 15,300 square feet; the smallest is Hurlock Branch at 4,268. The longest hours are at Cambridge Branch, 42.1 a week.
| Building | Type | Town | Hours a week | Floor area, sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cambridge Branch | Central library | Cambridge | 42.1 | 15,300 |
| Hurlock Branch | Branch | Hurlock | 26.1 | 4,268 |
County libraries of similar size in other states
All six of these systems record more visits per resident than this one. The highest checkout rate in the group belongs to Sheridan County Library System in Wyoming.
| System | Based in | Residents | Visits per resident | Checkouts per resident | Spending per resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scott County Library System | Eldridge, IA | 32,747 | 2.47 | 3.45 | $41.27 |
| Claiborne County Public Library | Tazewell, TN | 32,654 | 1.04 | 1.31 | $5.35 |
| W. G. Rhea Public Library | Paris, TN | 32,554 | 1.50 | 1.19 | $13.73 |
| Sheridan County Library System | Sheridan, WY | 32,519 | 3.35 | 7.24 | $56.60 |
| Chester County Library | Chester, SC | 32,294 | 1.38 | 1.74 | $32.23 |
| Nueces County Public Libraries | Robstown, TX | 32,230 | 1.19 | 2.29 | $30.76 |
Nearest in size within Maryland
- Caroline County Public Library · Denton · 33,386 residents
- Ruth Enlow Library of Garrett County · Oakland · 28,702 residents
- Talbot County Free Library · Easton · 37,626 residents
- Somerset County Library · Princess Anne · 24,584 residents