July 30, 2026 |
Photo – File Photo
Carbon County Library System Interim Director Jenita Calton announced revised operating hours for all seven of the county’s branches.
Beginning August 1st, the Carbon County Library System will adopt new hours for its branches. The Rawlins Library will be closed Mondays, but open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays, and noon to 6 p.m. Fridays. In total, the county’s main branch will be open 26 hours a week. In an email to Bigfoot99 and Bandit102, Interim Library Director Jenita Calton wrote that the “Storytime” and “Sit and Stitch” programs will continue thanks to volunteers from the community.
Calton wrote that the Elk Mountain Library, which is financially supported by the Elk Mountain Town Council, will be open 10 hours a week, noon to 5 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Donations from the Friends of the Encampment and Riverside Library have allowed the Encampment branch to offer 15 hours of service a week: Mondays 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Wednesdays noon to 5 p.m., and Thursdays 1 to 6 p.m.
In her email, Calton wrote that the Hanna and Medicine Bow libraries will each maintain a five‑hour weekly schedule. Both branches received grants from the Wyoming Intertie Foundation and Rocky Mountain Power last year to prevent them from closing as originally planned by the Library Board. The Hanna Library will operate Tuesdays from 1 to 6 p.m., while the Medicine Bow Library will be open Thursdays from 1 to 6 p.m.
Thanks to the Friends of the Little Snake River Valley Library, the Baggs branch will remain open 10 hours a week: Tuesdays 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Wednesdays 2 to 6 p.m., and Thursdays 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
In Saratoga, the Friends of the Saratoga Library have contributed enough money to keep the branch open 30 hours a week: Monday 1 to 6 p.m., Tuesday 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Wednesday 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Thursday 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Friday 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Every branch is closed on weekends.
In her email, Calton wrote that additional funding from the County Commissioners would let the Library System operate 60 hours a week. She added that residents have shown strong support for local libraries by donating to the Carbon County Library Foundation and various Friends groups.
It is important to note that, in addition to its $180,000 contribution to the entire Library System this current fiscal year, the Board of Carbon County Commissioners also donated $30,000 to be split evenly among the county’s seven branches.
