Sulphur Springs Public Library

What Sulphur Springs Public Library does

Sulphur Springs Public Library is the municipal public library of Sulphur Springs, Texas, operated by the City of Sulphur Springs and governed ultimately by the City Manager and City Council. The Library Director (Hope Cain, MLIS) leads a six-person staff — one full-time circulation services/employee supervisor, one full-time adult services specialist, one full-time youth services specialist, one part-time technology assistant, and one part-time children's program assistant — and is responsible for operations, collection management, budgeting, and programming. The library serves the residents of Sulphur Springs and Hopkins County from a single location at 611 N. Davis St., with extended hours including Thursday evening operation.

The library's core offering combines a physical collection of 38,000+ items with a digital collection of 80,000+ eBooks and eAudiobooks accessible via the Overdrive/Libby platform. Discovery runs through the ATRIUUM online catalog (27,014 annual lookups). Supporting digital resources are delivered through third-party integrations: Pronunciator and Bluebird Languages for language learning (163+ languages), ResumeMaker Pro for career services, Gale Legal Forms for legal documents, Career Online High School for adult diploma completion, Princh for wireless printing, and Tuition Funding Sources for scholarship access. Special collections — the digitized St. Clair Music Box Collection, WWII memorabilia, and Kinkaid paintings — provide cultural differentiation and have drawn PBS exposure.

The library is funded primarily through City of Sulphur Springs tax allocation, with nominal fee-based revenue from replacement library cards ($3), printing ($0.20 B&W, $1.00 color), faxes ($1.00/page plus cover), and scans ($3.00). Service distribution is hybrid: in-person at the physical location, through the Booksys online catalog, via Overdrive/Libby for digital lending, and through embedded web portals for digital resources. Strategic partnerships with Hopkins County Schools (literacy), Paris Junior College (adult education/GED), Workforce Solutions Northeast Texas (workforce development spanning nine counties), AARP Tax Aide (free tax preparation), and the Hopkins County Genealogical Library (co-located) extend the library's functional scope beyond traditional lending into a community services hub.

Name

Sulphur Springs Public Library

Legal name

Sulphur Springs Public Library

Website

https://sslibrary.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Sulphur Springs Public Library is a municipal library serving Sulphur Springs and Hopkins County, Texas, combining a 38,000-item physical collection with 80,000+ digital titles and adult education, workforce, and language-learning programs funded primarily by the City of Sulphur Springs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Library Services

NAICS

Libraries and Archives (51921)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAEAGAC

Public Library Operations & Community Branch Management

Education/Education Facilities & Support Services/Library, Media Center & Learning Space Operations

SECONDARYBPAIACAO

Public Libraries & Information Services

Business & Public Services/Public Sector & Government Administration/Local/Municipal Government Administration

SECONDARYBPAGAHAF

Libraries, Archives & Special Collections

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Arts, Culture & Heritage Nonprofits

SECONDARYEDAEAGAE

Library Collections & Cataloging Services (Acquisitions, Metadata, Circulation)

Education/Education Facilities & Support Services/Library, Media Center & Learning Space Operations

Keywords

• Public library services
• Community lending
• Digital resources
• Adult education
• Literacy programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Sulphur Springs

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Library Services: Public library services funded primarily through city government allocation. Additional revenue from library card fees, copy/print services, fax services, and scanning services.
2. Library Card Fees: First library card is free; replacement cards are $3. Cards expire annually and must be renewed.
3. Print/Copy Services: Black and white copies/prints at $0.20 each, color copies at $1.00 each, faxes at $1.00 per page plus cover, scans to email at $3.00 each.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Sulphur Springs Public Library provides free public library services to residents of Sulphur Springs and Hopkins County, Texas, including access to a physical collection of over 38,000 items and a digital collection of 80,000+ eBooks and eAudiobooks through Overdrive/Libby. It also offers digital learning resources (Pronunciator, Bluebird Languages, ResumeMaker Pro, Gale Legal Forms, Career Online High School), wireless printing via Princh, special historical collections, and community programs in partnership with local schools and organizations.

Product overview

Sulphur Springs Public Library is a traditional public library offering a unified service combining physical and digital resources. The core offering includes a physical collection of over 38,000 items plus digital access through Overdrive/Libby with 80,000+ eBooks and eAudiobooks. Supporting digital services include Pronunciator and Bluebird Languages for language learning, ResumeMaker Pro for career services, Career Online High School for adult education, Gale Legal Forms for legal documents, and Princh wireless printing. The library also maintains special collections including the digitized St. Clair Music Box Collection, World War II memorabilia, and Kinkaid paintings. The ATRIUUM online catalog provides unified discovery across physical and digital materials, with annual usage exceeding 27,000 lookups.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Physical Collection Lending
• Overdrive/Libby Digital Lending
• ATRIUUM Online Catalog
• Career Online High School
• Princh Wireless Printing
• AARP Tax Aide
• St. Clair Music Box Collection
• Hopkins County Genealogical Library Genealogical research service housed in the library's large meeting room, providing enhanced patron access to county genealogical records and research materials.

Quantifiable outcome

• 43,000+ annual patron visits in FY 2021
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration13 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Hopkins County SchoolscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerContinued focus on emerging literacy has led to partnerships with local schools and programs for the younger children of Hopkins County.
• Texas A&M CommercecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDigitized the St. Clair Music Box Collection through a grant from Texas A&M Commerce.
• Paris Junior CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for adult education including GED program, continuing education, and workforce education. Paris Junior College offers free GED classes at various locations.
• Workforce Solutions Northeast TexascoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorkforce development services linking employers to skilled workers across Bowie, Cass, Delta, Franklin, Hopkins, Lamar, Morris, Red River, and Titus Counties.
• Overdrive/LibbycoreTechnology or IntegrationDigital lending platform offering 80,000 additional digital items including eBooks and eAudiobooks.
• AARP Tax AideminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFree tax preparation assistance for patrons through AARP Tax Aide program with appointment scheduling available.
• PBS - The DaytripperminorGTM or Marketing PartnerThe St. Clair Music Box Collection was showcased on the PBS TV series The Daytripper with Chet Garner.
• Hopkins County Genealogical LibrarycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMoved into the large meeting room of the library to better serve a larger number of patrons.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Dallas Public Library: Major urban library system in Dallas, TX, serving as a regional incumbent with comparable digital resources (Overdrive, language learning, career services) but at metropolitan scale.
• Austin Public Library: Large municipal library system in Austin, TX, offering the same Overdrive/Libby digital lending, language learning, and adult-education programming at significantly greater scale and budget.
• Houston Public Library: One of the largest U.S. municipal library systems; operates the same Overdrive/Libby digital lending, GED/adult-education, and multilingual learning platforms at city-wide scale.

Direct peers

• Tyler Public Library: Public library in Tyler, TX, similar East Texas municipal structure with comparable cardholder scale and digital lending (Overdrive/Libby). Closest like-for-like comparable for operating benchmarks.
• Paris Public Library: Municipal public library in Paris, TX — geographically adjacent in Northeast Texas and connected to Sulphur Springs via the same Paris Junior College / Workforce Solutions partnerships. Most directly comparable in size, community-led GTM, and service mix.
• Greenville Public Library (TX): Public library in Greenville, TX, a similar-sized North Texas city; comparable municipal ownership, Overdrive-driven digital lending, and community partnership model.
• Mount Pleasant Public Library: Small Northeast Texas municipal library serving Titus County — overlapping geography with Workforce Solutions Northeast Texas catchment; comparable scale and resource stack.
• Longview Public Library: Municipal public library in Longview, TX, sharing East Texas demographic and economic profile with Sulphur Springs; comparable staffing, hours, and adult-education focus.

Others

• Texas State Library and Archives Commission: State-level library governance and resource body in Texas. Not a competitor but an ecosystem participant providing TexShare databases, legal forms (sll.texas.gov), and grant/funding frameworks that directly support Sulphur Springs Public Library.
• Hopkins County Genealogical Library: Partner genealogical research library physically housed inside Sulphur Springs Public Library. Adjacent service in the same space, sharing patron traffic and historical research resources.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/sulphurspringstx
• Facebookfacebook.com/OfficialSulphurSpringsPublicLibrary
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sulphur-springs-public-library

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sulphur Springs Public Library