552 Gilmanton Corner Public Library, Gilmanton, New Hampshire

I had an errand in Tilton, and that gave me an excuse to look for a library to visit. I was intrigued that Gilmanton, with a population of less than 4000, has two libraries--or so it seemed. I'd visit two on one trip, but one of them was not open on Monday, so my decision of which to visit was made for me. This small, unassuming building near what appears to be the center of town holds a variety of surprises. For starters, it is staffed entirely by dedicated volunteers, who keep it open four or five days a week, for ten to 16 hours a week, depending on the season. 

The book return is scaled to the size of the library. And the presence of a snow shovel in September...well, winter is coming and it's wise to be prepared!

This will not be an orderly trip through the library, because the space is small and treasures are everywhere. The typewriter is impressive, but not surprising in a library. Those foot-shaped cobblers lasts are not what I would have expected, however. But when I learned that this building was a cobbler's shop for fifty years, it made sense that there would be historial treasures.

Shelves of recorded books are ready for road trips or long winters.

I thought I would be able to read this in the picture, so I didn't make a note. I do know that this impressive lady was a librarian here at one time.  And how about that handsome last!

The original building has had one addition in its lifetime, an ell for the children's area. It was actually added because boys at a local Academy wanted a clubhouse!  [Aren't those great bookends?]

This is part of the non-fiction collection. Note that there is an air conditioner for summer use.

Edgar Allen Poe and some of his books, up high.

Some manipulatives are standing by on the table in the kids area. We're in a transitional time in the covid pandemic, with some libraries making toys available again, others keeping them stashed away. 

The white card explains the shelving system for J fiction. They are alphabetical by author's last name, and within that system, four colors indicate which part of the alphabet. For example, books with a red marker are by authors whose last names begin with A through E.

Back in the old building, this easy chair is waiting for a reader. It comes complete with a reading light and a magnifier on flexible goosenecks.

This view is from just inside the door, looking the length of the library. That table in the foreground looks as if it has been here for much of the library's life.

In the days before computers, books had pockets in the back to hold a card. The card was removed and kept with the patron's name and the date. The date due was stamped on the pocket, as a reminder to the patron. Gilmanton is still using that system--it works. I've visited two other libraries that used pockets and cards, one in Minnesota and one in Iowa.

      

I made myself a "rule" some years back to always look up before leaving a library. It's wonderful how often I find something special when I do this. Here, I found a half-timbered space that I learned had once been fated to have a sheetrock ceiling, but a wise craftsman knew better and the space was plastered instead.

Perhaps the most unusual feature is this curved door. It was rescued from a fire in another building and installed here. It's not an optical illusion; it really is curved, and so are the wrought iron strap hinges. They just don't build 'em like they used to!

Did you notice that in my first entry I left some doubt about there being two libraries in Gilmanton? This is one. Another, with its own story, is not open on Mondays. It's known as the year-round library and I'll visit it later. And there actually is a third, open only in the summer. I

missed it by a few weeks, but I'll catch up with it next year.

9/27/2021

 

551 Maxfield Public Library, Louden, New Hampshire

I sometimes feel a bit bad that my library visiting hobby involves so much driving. I deal with this partly by driving a Prius (61.2 mpg on the trip to the mountains last week) and partly by combining trips. Sometimes I visit three or four libraries in one cluster. And sometimes I choose a library because it's near something else I'm going to. In the case of this library in Louden, I was already out this way for an adult education class on a farm. In the rain.

After the class I drove perhaps a dozen miles and my gps delivered me to this side of the library. 

Despite the rain, I was attracted to a couple of features on the grounds of the library. This is the Frances Nash Memorial Zen Garden.

These stairs, the Herbert Huggins Memorial Walkway, lead to an indoor-outdoor program area in the children's library.

Of course, I wouldn't have known any of that if I hadn't seen this near the entrance.

I backed up almost to the road to get this shot of the entrance.

One more sign on the building. This one has simply two dates: 1996 and 2046. The first represents the opening of the new part of the library building. The second, 50 years later, is the planned date for opening a time capsule. I doubt very much that I'll be around for that!

And with that settled, let's go inside and see what the Maxfield Library has to offer. 

For starters, the staff are very friendly and knowlegable about the library. As I've mentioned before, libraries seem to be the preferred place for heirloom grandfather clocks. This one did not seem to be working. Make a mental note of the bookcase below the window; we'll see it again.

The signpost directs us to various literary locations, from Hogwarts to The Haunted Woods. This might make you think we're in Teen territory, and you would be right.

Need another clue? That red rectangle is not (as I thought at first glance) a fire alarm box! No, it's a marker for Young Adult readers.

Of course the older part of the library has a fireplace. It appears to be decorative now, but in its prime I'm sure it served the practical purpose of providing warmth.

Seating and a table await visitors. The periodicals are straight ahead by the window.

I always like to give the periodicals a glance. They suggest a lot about the library community.

Remember that shelf we saw before? It turns out to be a collection of classic titles by authors like Lewis Carroll and D. H. Lawrence. 

Here is the media collection. The telescope is here, too, but it's hard to spot. I saw a list of about 130 New Hampshire libraries with telescopes donated by the New Hampshire Astronomical Society and available for patrons to borrow. Here and in other libraries I've heard that the Society puts on a presentation about astronomy and the telescope. This one has not been out often, largely because of the disruptions to service caused by Covid. Perhaps its use will pick up as life gets back to normal. 

This broad window seat creates a very welcoming spot. I'd like to sit there and read during a snowstorm!

This stepstool with a carved walking stick as a hande to keep you steady is a classic feature in some libraries. I've seen various models, but this is the first with such a handsome hand rail.

I like this display of books about immigration and immigrants.

Old card catalogs never die, they just find new purposes in life. I have one with four drawers at home, full of miscellaneous. This one is used for a seed collection. At least, it will be used for that purpose once people get acccustomed to visiting the library in person again.

Tucked in a small space across from that repurposed card catalog we find the computers and printer.

I was ready to head for the children's area downstairs, but I was sidetracked by a sizable meeting space, unused for quite a while since indoor meetings have been banned. It will be used again.

A door painted like this can only lead to the children's area. Note the sign that face masks are required. I'm sure that will stay true until vaccines are available for younger children. Can you spot the door  handle?

With the opening of the door we are greated with color! There are two full flights of stairs, but the handrails on both sides make the trip easy, even for my knees. Let's go down the yellow brick tile road.

A program room for the kids has rows of cover-up aprons waiting for the young patrons to return for messy craft programs.

I don't follow racing, so I had forgotten that Louden is the home of the New Hampshire Motor Speedway. This mural makes it clear that others have not forgotten!

I've seen other small tables with animal chairs, but this combination is especially attractive. A small collection of art supplies awaits young visitors.

You can't miss the Nancy Drew books in their bright yellow covers. The collection is extensive but not complete. The shelf dividers come in handy to keep books from falling over when kids take out multiple titles.

The colors in this area are great; kudos to whoever planned the color scheme. The purple counters and bookshelf tops tie the place together visually.

One more look at the speedway before I leave. I had intended to take a picture from the inside looking out at the program area, but I must have been distracted. Well, if you are in the area, stop and and take a look for yourself.

 9/24/2021

220a Weare Public Library, Weare, New Hampshire

I don't often re-visit libraries, but here I am back in Weare after eight years. [Look around, you'll find the first visit documented at 220, without the "a." This library remained in my memory because it was almost buried in snow on December 26, 2013. It's not too far from where I now live, so I decided to see what it looks like, snowless.

Well, it certainly does look different!

      

When I went inside and introduced myself, I was amazed that the first person I talked to remembered me! At least, she remembered the visit. And the library director came out of his office and told me that the "library in the snow" picture has been put to use for "closed because of weather" signs over the years. 

I was tipped off that I'd find something special in one room on the main level. This is where I learned the term STEMtember, a focus on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math for the month of September. 

To celebrate STEMtember, the library has acquired many, many games and kits that can be borrowed. They are displayed on several tables. 

Or in one case, hanging by the fireplace. That fireplace looks pretty clean...I think Santa will be safe dropping in to check out the backpack.

A good number of the kits are in circulation. In each case, a picture of the boxtop is used as a placeholder on the table, so kids (or adults, I assume) know what they are missing and what to request for next time. The variety of topics and age levels is amazing.

Adjacent to the STEM goodies is a shelf full of graphic novels and manga, suggesting that this space is actually the teen area. When I worked as a library page, a few years back, kids would take these books out by the dozen. Some of the series had numbers up into the 40s!

I have somewhere a picture taken by my Aunt Ruth when she was a librarian in Brooklyn, NY in the 1930s. For some reason this picture brings that earlier one to mind...and that's a compliment. [The chairs here are far newer!]

These matching boxes caught my eye. They are up by the ceiling and hold town documents of some sort. At first I thought they were decorations!

This unique wooden bench doubles as a chess or cribbage board. It was created to honor a former library director whose name I wrote down as "Mr. Mike." My understanding is that Mr. Mike was very popular and died after a too-short tenure as Director. At the end of this post, you'll see another chess board in his honor.

It is clear that when folks had no space for the family's grandfather clock, they commonly thought of the library. In the early days of this blog I thought that all (and only) New England libraries had grandfather clocks, while midwestern libraries all had quilts on display. I soon had to give up that idea, as there were too many counter-examples.  But I'll stand by the trend! This clock is special in several ways. First, it is still working! It is wound once a week, and I can testify that it bongs enthusiastically at 3 o'clock. It is also special in that the case was made locally and the works were made down the road in Concord.

Something else that just about every library has is a collection of books of interest to historians and genealogists. 

Dictionaries of various vintages have their own sturdy shelves with a slanted top for ease of use. The tan dictionary on the lower right looks old, but it dates in my lifetimeso I guess it IS old. I was so shocked I forgot to write down the publication date.

The dictionary here, from the lower left shelf, is from 1907. Why keep old dictionaries? Well, some people, and I'm one of them, like to look into the history of words. I find that it's more fun to do this in a dictionary, although sometimes it might be easier on line. Sometimes.

I don't remember the shelves from my first visit, but I was told that these are new, and I have no reason to doubt it. They look very spiffy.

Downstairs it's easy to guess that this is the children's area.

There are plenty of books for the grade school crowd, and a great rug that is ready and waiting for young "drivers" with toy cars.

Picture books are on lower shelves. I like the practice of displaying books on the top of shelves like this, since their covers are usually so colorful and eye-catching.

I meant to ask about some lovely pictures in the children's area, but I must have been distracted by something else. The pictures are covered with some sort of plastic for protection.

Here's another picture in a very different style, with a beanbag chair waiting for a kid to flop down with a book. I'd always like to see kids in a library, but on the other hand if there were to be a kid on that chair, I couldn't take the picture!

First there were comic books. I've seen a few libraries that dealt in comics, but not many. [I think it was a library in Upstate New York that was having a comic book give-away.] Now there are graphic novels and manga which (in my experience) were for a while few in number and hard to find. Now they are everywhere and their apologists are coming out of the woodwork with reasons to give them respect. I have learned to like some graphic novels and non-fiction, like Alison Bechdel's memoirs, but generally I'd rather stick to words.]

Another beanbag and rug waiting for a kid.

And that's the Weare library, but let's take a look outside before we go. This sign brings back memories of emptying the bookdrop where I worked and finding many books that people probably knew we couldn't use. Once, it was a dozen or more very outdated nursing textbooks. People can't bear to get rid of books they no longer want or need, so they turn to the nearest book place: their library. And the library has to deal with them. Most libraries need books for fund-raising sales, but of course they need books they can actually sell. And they need to have room for them. [Other things are put in book returns, too. Once upon a time in Spencer, Iowa, it was a half-frozen kitten. The kitten grew up to be Dewey Readmore Books, a feature at the library for many years.]

We saw the wooden chess and cribbage board bench inside. Here is the outdoor version in honor of Michael Sullivan, the Director from 2016 to 2019. When you see memorials like this you know that the honoree made a great impression in a few years.

In Memory of Michael Sullivan, Librarian, Musician, Author. His Activities Enriched Weare's Children and Community.

 9/20/2021