Did you know that there was a “Center Library” in Middlebury VT dating from 1795?

Did you know there was a Men’s Reading Association that met in the office of postmaster in 1848?

Did you know that the Ladies Library Association was formed at the home of Abby Wainwright (the Painter House) in 1866?

In celebration of the Ilsley Public Library’s 100th Birthday, the Friends of the Ilsley Publicy Library created eleven posters noting the location of libraries serving the town of Middlebury since 1795. A chaotic history was put to rest in 1924 when the Ilsley Public Library was built. We created posters with photos of “then” with bits of interesting history, along with pictures of the site as it looks “now.” The posters are chronologically displayed in store windows along Main Street, beginning with Two Brothers, and ending at the town offices. Check out the posters in the windows of the following stores:

1. Two Brothers
2. Fourth and Goal
3. Middleton
4. Buy Again Alley
5. Sweet Cecily
6. IPJ Real Estate
7. National Bank of Middlebury
8. Edgewater Gallery
9. Parlour
10. Acorn Travel
11. Town Offices

On a sunny afternoon, take a stroll down Main Street and learn about the long history of Middlebury libraries. Oh, and as you walk, sing “Happy Birthday dear Ilsley, happy birthday to you!

Using the History of the Ilsley Public Library as our roadmap and consulting many of the same sources, we set out to find where the library in Middlebury has lived since its inception. 

From 1795, a library has served as the social and educational heart of Middlebury, whether in a private home, church, tavern, building space, department store, bank, or in our current Ilsley Library building.  As Middlebury has grown, the need for larger facilities to meet increased demand for information and knowledge has been addressed by our community with bigger spaces, newer buildings, and renovations; an investment in the enrichment of our citizens and an investment in our Town. 

Sources consulted can be found at Ilsley Public Library in the incredible Vermont Room and the Henry Sheldon Museum Research Center.  (The staff at the Research Center is an invaluable resource in learning about the history of Middlebury, and they love to share wonderful tidbits of information learned in their scholarship.) 

 

Andres, G. (2021). A Walking History of Middlebury, Vermont (revised and edited).  Henry Sheldon Museum. 

Chatfield, V. (1966, February 14). Middlebury Library Has Come Far in 100 Years.  The Burlington Free Press, p. 3. 

Congregational Church of Middlebury, Vt., and Volume 4, Centre Library (Middlebury, Vt.), 1795-1805. (1790-). Records of  the Middlebury, Vt. Congregational Church, 1790-. Henry Sheldon Museum. 

Johnson, C. (Ed.) (1992). The Historic Architecture of Addison County: Including a listing of the Vermont State Register of Historic Places. The Vermont Division for Historic Preservation. 

Chatfield, V. (1978, June 29). Ilsley Improvements Help Library to Expand Services. The Addison County Independent, B1. 

Middlebury Library Now Century Old. (1966, December 6). The Burlington Free Press, Centennial Celebration Thursday. 

Munford, D. (2020). Images of America: Middlebury. Arcadia Publishing. 

Reading Association (Middlebury, Vt.). Reading Association Records 1848-1864. Henry L. Sheldon. 

Swift, S. (1971). History of the Town of Middlebury in the county of Addison, Vermont: To which is prefixed a statistical and historical account of the county, written at the request of the Historical Society of Middlebury. C.E. Tuttle. 

Historical reproductions courtesy of the Collection of Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History, Middlebury, Vermont; originally presented in A Walking History of Middlebury, Vermont by Glenn Andes and available on the Internet Archive. 

https://archive.org/details/middleburywalkinghistory 

The construction photograph and photo from the Addison County Independent were obtained from institutional records held by Ilsley Library. 

Historical journal entry photos, courtesy of the Sheldon Museum; and contemporary building photographs were taken by John Murray, Board Member of Friends of the Ilsley Library. 

 

Look How We’ve Changed: a celebration of our libraries in Middlebury was put together by Friends of the Ilsley Board members: Barbara Doyle-Wilch, John Murray and Pam Shafer; with invaluable graphic design assistance from Ilsley Public Library Operations Manager, Royce McGrath.