Libraries dot the landscape in the Quabbin area. These bastions of books and knowledge also though have a unique history unto themselves.
The Wheeler Memorial Library in Orange was built in 1914 and funded by Almira Wheeler as a memorial to her late husband, Mr. John Wheeler. “She funded it completely by herself and sold it to the town for $1. She and Mr. Wheeler were big proponents of education and learning so she felt the library was a fitting memorial for him,” according to Jessica Magelaner, director of the Wheeler Memorial Library and Moore Leland Library in Orange. “The architect was H.M. Francis of Fitchburg and the building style is an adaptation of French Renaissance, said Magelaner, adding that the cost of the completed building at the time, was approximately $50,000.
The Wheeler Library, she continued, is currently sixth on the state waiting list for renovations. Among the planned renovations is the completing of the second floor of the library, which will house the children’s room. “Mrs. Wheeler remarried to a Mr. Thompson, who was prominent in the local spiritualist community. He convinced her to stop spending money on the Memorial Library for her late husband. Therefore, the library was supposed to have a second floor but the funding was cut off before the second floor was built. So instead the library has a very odd little mezzanine area which is accessed through the attic and used for reference books and a storage area,” Magelaner explained.
The library originally had 3,000 books which came from a previous town public library that had been founded in 1868, she said. That collection was moved around to several locations before being moved to the Wheeler Memorial Library.
Other renovations planned include plans to expand the building to create a local community room, study rooms, as well as to create shelf space for books. An entryway is planned from the parking lot as well as an elevator to make the library handicapped accessible.
Currently, the library it is open normal hours but the bookshelves are closed as well as the local history area, the children’s room and the bathrooms. All of these will reopen on June 14. The library will follow all COVID-19 related local and state health regulations.
Another library with a fascinating past is the Phillips Free Public Library in Phillipston. This library had its beginnings in 1800 when town moderator Charles Baker called a meeting to form the “Library Society.” The society had been established at that time as books were very expensive.
The library itself began in 1860, established from the gift of Jonathan Phillips Esq. of $5,000, with interest from this money to be used for books. Phillips was the nephew of Lt. Gov. William Phillips Jr., whom the town was named after. There is a painting of Phillips as well as former librarian Tina Chaffin, at the library, according to Phillipston Library Director Jackie Prime.
The library originally opened in 1862 at Gould’s Tavern, on the common, then in 1862 moved to librarian Tina Chaffin’s on Baldwinville Road and by 1891 had moved into the Town Hall, according to Phillipston Historical Society Curator Jane French.
Early books at the library included books on agriculture, a dictionary, a set of encyclopedia, books on historical periods as well as novels by classic writers such as Charles Dickens and Nathaniel Hawthorne, she said. A small museum was added in 1899, with donations from various individuals. By 1891, 8,000 volumes were in the library, French said. The library moved to its current location, the former No. 1 School House on the common, in 1952.
The Phillips Free Public Library will be re-opening again on June 1, according to Prime. Again the library will follow all COVID-19 related local and state health regulations.
Carla Charter is a freelance writer from Phillipston. Her writing focuses on history with a particular interest in the history of the North Quabbin area.