the Week in Library Land: January 1 to January 4

Here we are in 2020! While the tail end of 2019 might have seen fewer libraries, this year has started with a flurry of visits. If we plan things correctly, we might be able to complete visits to the remaining Massachusetts public libraries this year. Not promising anything but it is possible!

Obviously none were open on New Year’s Day, so we started our visits on the second. And visit we did! We managed to visit five libraries in just two short days, well below our Berkshires marathon pace, but a great start to the year.

The first library was the Oxford Free Library. We first visited this library in July of 2019. It was a really fun and lovely visit. While we were there the first time we saw that they had a fiddle in their Library of Things. I noticed it didn’t have a shoulder rest. As I was packing to move, I found a spare one and brought it over to the library as a small gift. I also took advantage of their small history room to get some work done. Library Land Score: 4.35.

The Sutton Public Library.

Just down the road from Oxford is the Sutton Public Library. It is located in the basement of the town hall and shares a parking lot with the fire station. The town archives are in a vault in the library - a vault the staff have never been seen opened and that some believe is home to a dragon. Sutton has a population of just under 10,000 and its library is a fairly simple affair.

There are no study rooms, but there is a table and chair in the far rear of the space where one can sit and work. The staff were friendly and proud of their library. "Small but mighty" is how one librarian described it. Library Land Score: 3.91.

The third and final library of the day was the Millville Public Library. A lot to unpack about this visit. It was the first library we’ve seen that was currently decertified. The cause? As is almost always the case, local budget cuts. The library is now only open 13.5 hours per week and was unable to secure a waiver. 

What’s troubling (at least to me) about decertification is that the people being punished are the patrons that rely on the library. They aren’t the people that need to be convinced of the library’s value. Decertification, in many instances, does nothing to reach the naysayers or the cut spending crowd. To this group, decertification may seem like a positive development. Unless there is a groundswell of support, decertification can lead to a vicious cycle, where patrons find access to their own library limited and services at other libraries cut off. Making it harder for people to use the library hardly seems like a formula for long-term success.

But how do you persuade a community that a library is worth funding? To readers of Library Land, that question seems unbelievable. How could a library not be worth funding? How can it be possible that people don’t recognize that libraries are the one civic institution equally open and accessible to all? This is a huge challenge and it’s one that really comes down to sharing stories that demonstrate and reinforce the value of libraries. But taking that value from those that need it most? Not a good direction. 

The Millville Public Library.

Millville is further challenged by the fact that the Blackstone Library is just down the road. It’s relatively new and has a fine collection and great programs. Millville residents may technically not be allowed to borrow, but they can use any of the Blackstone’s resources on site.

Despite decertification, the Millville Library is a busy and well-loved place. During this visit there was a steady stream of patrons, most of whom were on a first name basis with the staff. A mom who had just moved to town came in with her two children. Someone came in with their dog. It was lively. One of the most heartening things to hear was that some kids had created a “junior” friends group and had raised several hundred dollars for the library through lemonade stands. That’s really nice and positive, but it’s a drop in the bucket relative to the cost of running a library.

All in all, though, I left the Millville Library with a really positive feeling. It’s clear that there is a strong commitment to the community on the part of the staff, as well as a core group of regular library users. Hopefully, in time, that will be enough to re-certify the library. Library Land Score: 3.91.

On Friday morning, Adam spent some time at the Woburn Public Library, which never fails to impress. It’s super comfortable and a really productive place to get work done. Library Land Score: 4.91.

The always amazing Woburn Public Library.

On Friday, we also realized that three days into the New Year we hadn’t visited a library together and set out to correct that situation. We decided on the Nahant Public Library. We visited it for the first time back in December of 2018. As I recall, it was a gray winter day. This visit, too, was on a gray afternoon. Neither time did the darkening sky lessen our opinion of the wonderful library.

One standout feature is the library’s glass-floored stacks. We cite them as a reason for this being one of our favorite libraries. It’s also got a really quirky collection - including some board games from the 1940s. It’s cool stuff (even if the games don’t circulate). The staff are really into games and from time-to-time have a Scrabble game going for them and patrons, including the mail carrier, to play.

The glass-floored stacks make Nahant a must-see library.

It’s also a very comfortable place to work. The main reading room is lovely, with high ceilings and old tables and chairs. There are also some interesting exhibits in the library, stone tools from different groups of indigenous Americans. It may not be easy to reach, but the Nahant Library is well worth a visit. Library Land Score: 4.18.

So there you have it, the first half a week of 2020 and we’ve already visited five libraries. At this rate, we’ll finish the state in no time! ;-)