Warren Public Library, Warren, Massachusetts

The Warren Public Library.

Library Land started with a quest to find places to work that weren’t home. Obviously, it evolved into so much more than that. This visit to the beautiful Warren Public Library was a bit of a throwback. Greg was meeting his brother David to work on some fibre arts projects. David does cross-stitch, and Greg is into embroidery. They’re so different!

The building, designed by Amos Cutting of Worcester, is Richardsonian Romanesque and was built using pink granite from Monson and brownstone from Longmeadow. It was opened on July 4, 1890. Parking is available right in front, and there were plenty of spaces. Warren is a small town with fewer than 3,000 residents and plenty of street parking, so it’s hard to imagine not being able to find a place to park.

Climbing up the granite steps, they were greeted by one of our favorite things in a public library - stuffed birds and beasts. There was a display case of various endemic birds (at least they once were) and critters. All around a tree trunk, and surrounded by grasses, they were very interesting. To the left is a staircase that goes up the tower (which we will return to), to the right, the library itself.

As they entered the library proper, the service desk was right there. Children’s, which is bright and colorful, is to the right. Later during the visit, an older patron shared his reminiscences of the space. His first recollection of it was from about the time he was 5 years old. It was nice to hear. To the left is much of the adult collection, as well as public computers and an absolutely stunning staircase.

Before exploring further, they spoke with a few of the library workers. One of them, Gena, really knew the library and offered a tour. But first, Greg and David needed to sew!

The stairs branch to the right and left at a half-story landing before sweeping the rest of the way with graceful curves. It honestly was gorgeous. At the tops of the stairs is the rest of the adult collection as well as a large hall, which is where the sewing would occur.

That room had a large table and chairs. It also serves as the library’s museum. We’ve talked about library museums in the past. Sometimes they are strange collections with no attempts at curation, while others are quite well done. The Warren Public Library is more on the quite well-done side of things. Gena has taken it upon herself to explore and interpret a growing collection of the library’s random holdings. Each week, she published an article about one of them as part of her “Fun Facts Friday” series. 

After viewing some of the items, Greg and David sat down and got to work. Much thread was expended, and a good time was had. Once the pair was at an appropriate pausing place in their projects, it was time for more in-depth discussions and exploration.

Gena renewed her offer of a tour, and they set off. It was noted that there was amazing woodwork all around. In fact, it was some of the finest we’ve seen. Its beauty contributed to and benefited from the overall great impression of the library. 

One of the things Gena showed us was the library’s stained glass. As you know, we’re suckers for the stuff. We’ve seen all kinds of things represented, but none have been more touching than what was seen in Warren. On the first landing of the town stairs, a portrait of a young woman looking placidly toward us.

The woman, Clara Adelphia, was the town’s first librarian. She was credited with “organizing and managing the town’s oldest continuous institution of free public information and individual betterment.” Sadly, Clara was  26 years old when she died of consumption. Her brother, Albert, the first in the town to volunteer for the Civil War, commissioned the glass in his sister’s honor. Her continued presence in the library is a beautiful thing. We’ve seen a lot of memorials and recognitions of librarians, but none were as sweet or poignant as this one.

As they wrapped up the visit, the staff were asked about their favorite parts of the library. Gena had shown Greg and David a few of hers, but also shared how it was the patrons she most enjoyed. Another person, who had grown up in the town, chimed in to add that serving her community was what she loved. That love of people and the community was on full display in this sweet library.