Monday, February 25, 2008

Warren Memorial Library: Past and Present

Westbrook is home to two public libraries. Walker Memorial is the municipal library in Westbrook, supported by taxpayer dollars. And our library, Warren Memorial, is also a public library, but is supported primarily by the Warren Memorial Foundation. Some small grants and donations round out our financing.

Warren's history starts with the paper mill. Samuel Warren set up a library in the mill for mill employees which eventually was moved to its present location at 479 Main Street. Samuel's wife, Susan, left money to establish a trust in her husband's memory when she died. In 1929, the Warren Memorial Foundation was established to fulfill Susan's wish of a permanent foundation for educational purposes, including a cultivation and promotion of the arts. Subsequently, the library was opened to the public. For a more in-depth history of the Warren family's contribution to Westbrook, Anastasia Weigle's A Presence in the Community: The Warren Family Legacy offers a great overview.

Many of our patrons at Warren feel like our extended family, and we are always happy to see new faces! Warren Library cards are free to Westbrook residents, and to those employed in the city. We are part of the Minerva consortium and are able to get books, movies, and audiobooks from all over the state at no charge. For more information about what's going on at Warren, visit our website at warren.lib.me.us or our MySpace site at myspace.com/warrenlibrary.

- Wendy Hysko

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