Located at: 2948 VT RTE 100 in the Municipal Center Building.  Approximately 8 miles south on Route 100 from the town of Wilmington, across from the Jacksonville Post Office.

Whitingham Free Public Library
P.O. Box 500
Jacksonville, Vermont 05342

Staff:  Kristine Sweeter, Librarian; Ann Hamilton, Assistant Librarian
Trustees: Hildur Murdock, Chair, Christine Clough, Susan Johnson, Paul Bruno, Doris Steindhardt

Mission Statement: The Library will continue to expand the horizons of the community by providing diverse materials of high quality to fill the educational and recreational needs of the citizens it serves.

Vision Statement: Everyone in the community will be informed of the Library’s programs and resources so they will be able to make maximum use of them and feel more involved in community affairs.

Children will have access to materials and programs to develop skills for continued academic and social growth in an unstructured atmosphere.

Adults in the community will have a place to read current newspapers and/or periodicals and to interact with one another so they will feel a sense of community.

Everyone in the community will have access to the Internet at the Library to help them research their interest and better understand the world outside of Whitingham.

Outreach services will be offered to families unable to visit the Library which will allow for their personal development to continue outside the workplace and school environments.

Library History

Sometime in the 1890's, the first collection of books, known as the Library, was located at the home of the postmistress.  At the March 1899 Town Meeting, $25 was appropriated to establish a town Library and five trustees were elected to care for it.  By 1910, there were 500 books in circulation.  The Library operated out of various homes and businesses for many years.  In 1916 a Librarian was paid for her services for the first time.

In 1929 the Library found a home in a building owned by E.J. Roberts located between the Robert’s Garage and the Creamery.  In 1930 Minerva Reed became the Librarian, a position she held for fifty years. While she was Librarian, the Library moved to its current location which was added to the Municipal Center specifically as The Library.  It was an exciting move--1680 square feet!

Now as we begin the year 2002, we have a collection of over 11,000 books, audio and video tapes and periodicals. Our hours have expanded over the years and we are now open eighteen hours a week and we are open four days.  We have a paid librarian and a group of volunteers who average more than 30 hours a week.  Last year we had 6,632 patron visits and circulation numbered 9,760 items, including 75 books which were loaned to other libraries in Vermont.  We also had 87 new members who joined our library in 2001.

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