WARDSBORO — After 24 years of successful ownership, management, and major rehabilitation and renovation of the old 1840s farmhouse and barn that has served as Wardsboro's public library since 1991, the Friends of the Wardsboro Library have gifted the property and building to the town.
The town agreed to accept the gift by means of a special ballot held on Nov 8, 2022.
“Twenty-three years ago, there were many who doubted that such a small group of determined citizens could sustain public support and long-term interest for the Friends and for the Library, yet, the official deed transfer from the Friends to the rown took place on June 2,” the Friends said in a news release.
The Friends of the Wardsboro Library was chartered as a nonprofit organization in 1991 to purchase and own a house with an attached barn at 170 Main St., with the mission of turning it into the home of the Wardsboro Public Library.
The effort involved hundreds of volunteers over the years, serving as board members, as part of the teams running major events, and as hands-on workers in clean-up and renovation projects.
In all, the Friends raised more than $800,000 to create a facility that has become the center of activity in Wardsboro. In honor of a significant donation from the Danforth family 1991, the building is known as the Gloria Danforth Memorial Building.
The Wardsboro Public Library has expanded since it first occupied the farmhouse to now offer more than 7,000 titles in fiction and nonfiction, plus various media, games, and periodicals.
Library staff and volunteers have kept up a schedule of public programming, all at no cost to participants, that includes a weekly knitting group, mahjong classes, regular movie nights, weekly after school fun, youth summer reading programs, and slide talks, to name a few.
The Friends said they intend to offer ongoing support to the town-elected Library Trustees, as well as volunteering for the many of the popular community events the organization has hosted since 1991.
Going forward, the Library Trustees said are organizing the now-famous Gilfeather Turnip Festival, the annual Memorial weekend plant sale, holiday bazaars and Santa's visit.
The Trustees are also relying on their Annual Appeal and hope that the people of Wardsboro, second-homeowners, and all library patrons will continue with donations to offset the costs of library books, supplies, equipment, and more free programming for adults and children.
The board members and volunteers of the Friends of the Wardsboro Library said they are “extremely proud to know that they have accomplished their original mission of creating a welcoming Library space in this small town of only 800 residents,” building and maintaining “a community gathering spot that is lively, safe, clean, comfortable, and functional.”
For more information about the Friends, email [email protected].