Lithgow Public Library

What Lithgow Public Library does

Lithgow Public Library is a municipal public library operating as a bureau of the City of Augusta, Maine, serving residents of Augusta and the surrounding area from a historic 1896 building at 45 Winthrop Street. The library provides lending collections, digital resources, educational programs, and community services for all ages, with segmented offerings for children (Summer Reading, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten, homework help), teens (programs plus LGBTQ+, health/safety, and transportation/unhoused resources), adults (genealogy, job seeker tools, small business resources, technology help), and the general public (study rooms, community meeting space, museum and park passes, Library of Things).

The library's core technology infrastructure is the MINERVA Library Consortium shared catalog (minerva.maine.edu), which provides a unified public access catalog and patron account management across participating Maine libraries. The digital ecosystem is layered with third-party licensed platforms: Cloud Library for ebook and audiobook lending, Kanopy for streaming video, Comics Plus for digital comics and graphic novels, Creativebug for arts and crafts instruction, and Transparent Language Online for language learning. A mobile app extends catalog and program access through the App Store and Google Play, supported by a website, Facebook, Instagram, and an email newsletter.

Lithgow operates as a publicly funded, non-commercial institution with no user fees for core services; revenue figures are not publicly disclosed. Funding flows from the City of Augusta's municipal budget supplemented by the Friends of Lithgow Library, a separate nonprofit support organization that accepts donations on the library's behalf. The operating model is that of a traditional American public library: free access, broad community service mandate, and patronage open to anyone with a library card rather than a paying customer base.

Name

Lithgow Public Library

Legal name

Lithgow Public Library

Website

https://lithgowlibrary.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1895

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Lithgow Public Library is a municipally funded public library in Augusta, Maine, serving community members of all ages with lending collections, digital resources, educational programs, and community spaces, operating as a bureau of the City of Augusta.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Library Services

NAICS

Libraries and Archives (51921), Libraries and Archives (519210), Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (519), Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (5192)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Libraries & Information Services (BPAIACAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Public Library Operations & Community Branch Management (EDAEAGAC), Digital Library & Electronic Resources Operations (e-Resources, Repositories, Licensing) (EDAEAGAF), Library User Services & Information Support (Reference, Research Help, Instruction Support) (EDAEAGAL), Library-Based Learning Programs (Public Libraries) (EDAAAFAA)

Keywords

• Public library services
• Community lending programs
• Digital library resources
• Youth education programs
• Genealogy research services

Headquarters

HQ city

Augusta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Others

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Lithgow Public Library is a municipal public library that lends physical and digital collections and provides educational and community programs for all ages. It operates the MINERVA shared catalog with Maine libraries and partners with digital platforms (CloudLibrary, Kanopy, Comics Plus, Creativebug, Transparent Language) to provide ebooks, audiobooks, streaming video, comics, and language learning. Physical services include study and community meeting rooms, Library of Things, museum and park passes, genealogy research, youth and teen programming, and technology help for patrons.

Product overview

Lithgow Public Library operates as a traditional public library system offering a unified catalog service (Minerva) shared across Maine libraries, supplemented by multiple digital resource modules. The library's digital ecosystem includes CloudLibrary for ebooks/audiobooks, Kanopy for streaming video, Comics Plus for digital comics, Transparent Language for language learning, and Creativebug for craft tutorials. Physical offerings encompass study/meeting rooms, the Library of Things lending program, genealogy research services, and career development resources for job seekers and small businesses. Youth and teen services provide age-specific programming including summer reading, homework help, and specialized teen resources. The library also offers museum and park pass lending, along with regularly updated physical collections.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Library of Things
• Study Rooms and Community Meeting Room
• Museum and Park Passes
• Genealogy and Family History Resources
• Tools for Job Seekers
• Small Business Resources
• Technology Help Services
• Youth Services Programs
• Teen Services
• Summer Reading 2026
• Dolly Parton's Imagination Library
• 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten
• CloudLibrary Digital Lending
• Kanopy Video Streaming
• Comics Plus
• Transparent Language Online
• Creativebug
• New Materials

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and standard.

• Friends of Lithgow LibrarycoreOthersNon-profit support organization for the library. Accepts donations on behalf of the library (donate button linked on library website). Supports library funding and programs.
• MINERVA Library ConsortiumcoreTechnology or IntegrationShared library catalog system (minerva.maine.edu) used by Maine libraries. Library catalog and My Library Account access through MINERVA platform.
• Cloud Library (YourCloudLibrary)coreTechnology or IntegrationDigital e-book and e-audiobook lending platform. Featured on library website under Online & Streaming services.
• KanopycoreTechnology or IntegrationStreaming video service for movies, documentaries, and educational content. Unlimited viewing available - no tickets required.
• Comics PlusstandardTechnology or IntegrationDigital comics, graphic novels, and manga lending service through librarypass.com
• CreativebugstandardTechnology or IntegrationArts and crafts video tutorial streaming service for DIY projects, crafting, and creative learning
• Transparent Language OnlinestandardTechnology or IntegrationLanguage learning digital resource for foreign language acquisition

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• Hoopla Digital: Digital lending platform for libraries offering ebooks, audiobooks, video, and music — a peer technology provider to Lithgow's digital collection stack and ecosystem partner for public library patrons.
• Kanopy: Streaming video service for public libraries; Lithgow already partners with Kanopy for unlimited patron viewing, making Kanopy both an active partner and a peer in the library digital-services ecosystem.
• OverDrive / Libby: Digital ebook/audiobook lending platform serving public libraries, a direct peer technology provider in the same ecosystem as Lithgow's CloudLibrary integration; comparable as enabling infrastructure rather than direct competition.

Broad incumbents

• New York Public Library: Iconic large-scale public library system with historic branches, deep programming, and extensive digital lending — represents the upper-scale precedent for Carnegie-era municipal libraries like Lithgow.
• Boston Public Library: Larger, well-funded municipal library system in Massachusetts with extensive historic architecture, research collections, and broad programming — illustrates the scaled version of Lithgow's Carnegie-era public library model.

Regional players

• Maine State Library: Statewide library authority in Maine that coordinates services, supports the MINERVA consortium, and provides resources to municipal libraries like Lithgow. Acts as a sector governing and resource-sharing counterpart.

Direct peers

• Lewiston Public Library: Maine municipal public library in Lewiston with similar Carnegie-era heritage and membership in the MINERVA consortium, serving as a directly comparable small-city Maine peer.
• Bangor Public Library: Carnegie-era municipal public library in Bangor, Maine — same scale, same governance model (city bureau), and overlapping historic-building programming as Lithgow Public Library. Most directly comparable Maine peer.
• Portland Public Library (Maine): Maine municipal public library in Portland, sharing the same Carnegie-era heritage, MINERVA catalog participation, and broad programming model for all ages. Comparable in mission and regional role.
• Waterville Public Library: Maine municipal library in Waterville participating in the MINERVA consortium, offering comparable lending, digital resource, and community programming models to Lithgow.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/LithgowPublicLibrary
• Instagraminstagram.com/p/DbbA5a5EWJx

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Lithgow Public Library