William D. Weeks Memorial Library facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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William D. Weeks Memorial Library
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 Location in New Hampshire
Location in the United States
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| Location | 128 Main St., Lancaster, New Hampshire |
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| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1906 |
| Architect | McLean and Wright; Tennant/Wallace |
| Architectural style | Beaux Arts |
| NRHP reference No. | 00001464 |
| Added to NRHP | December 1, 2000 |
The William D. Weeks Memorial Library, also known as the Weeks Memorial Library, is a public library in Lancaster, New Hampshire. It is run by the Town of Lancaster in Coös County, New Hampshire.
This brick building is located at 128 Main Street. It was built in 1906 and made bigger in 1998. In 2000, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Today, the library has about 62,000 books, newspapers, and movies. The Weeks Memorial Library is a busy place for kids, teens, and adults in the community.
More than 4,000 people in the Lancaster area have library cards. This includes people from nearby towns too.
Contents
How the Library Started
The town of Lancaster began its first library around 1850. In 1858, a "Reading Circle" was created for the townspeople. They got more money for the library after a meeting in 1860. This early library was open until 1867. It had about 200 books and was kept in the first librarian's office. To join the library back then, people paid $20 for a share. This way of joining lasted for 70 years.
In 1884, a man named George P. Rowell helped start the public library services in Lancaster. He gave 1,000 books to the town's free public library. By then, the library had grown to 2,500 books. In 1896, the Lancaster Library was in a building that used to be a courthouse.
Rowell also offered the old Lancaster Academy building for the library. He said the town needed to raise $500 to support it. This was the start of the Lancaster Public Library. Rowell then paid to fix up the building and create a new list for the books. Within a few years, the library had about 4,000 books.
A New Building for the Library
In 1905, a man named John W. Weeks helped build a new library in Lancaster. He had been a politician, serving in the United States House of Representatives and as a U.S. Secretary of War. He wanted the new library to be named after his father, William Dennis Weeks. Even though John W. Weeks became a politician in Massachusetts, his family was from Lancaster. The library building was a way to honor the education that helped him succeed.
John W. Weeks also helped create the Weeks Act in 1911. This law allowed the government to buy land in the eastern United States. This was done to protect rivers and water areas. This law led to the creation of the nearby White Mountain National Forest.
When the Weeks Memorial Library opened in 1908, it had 9,000 books. It was built to hold about 20,000 books, planning for future growth. In 1930, a special section for children's books was added.
Growing the Library
As the number of books grew, the Weeks Memorial Library needed more space. In 1998, an addition was built. This made the library easier for everyone to use and updated it to modern safety rules. At that time, the library had over 30,000 books and 1,000 movies and other media.
In 2000, the Weeks Memorial Library was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This means it is an important historical place because of how it was built and what it has done for the community.
Today, the library serves about 3,507 people. Each year, people borrow books and other items about 35,377 times. As of 2016, the library had 61,937 books and other items. The current library director is Barbara R. Robarts.
Library Building Style
The Weeks Memorial Library was built in the Beaux-Arts style. This style often includes "parts that stick out and go back in, classical columns, carved designs around windows and doors, and other details." This was a popular style for libraries in the early 1900s. Many libraries built with money from the Carnegie family also used this style.
The first building was designed by McLean and Wright. It is about 60 feet long and 40 feet wide. It has a hipped roof with two chimneys. The front of the building has a central entrance that sticks out. The doorway is set back and has a window above it with a decorative frame. Doric columns stand on each side of the doorway. Beyond these, there are Ionic pilasters (flat columns). Above these is a decorated triangular shape called a pediment.
In 1998, the building was made larger. The new part was designed by Thomas Wallace. It matched the style of the old building but used modern building methods and materials.
What the Library Does
The Weeks Memorial Library has three main goals:
- It helps people of all ages learn and have fun through activities, technology, and programs.
- It is a public place where ideas are kept. People can find information from books, movies, and online. Trained staff help organize these resources and make them easy to find.
- It is a central spot in the community where information, knowledge, culture, and history connect with people.
Library Services and Programs
The library offers many programs and activities. These include story times for kids, book clubs for discussions, fun activities that encourage exercise, and movie nights. The library also helps adults learn basic reading, writing, and math. They have resources for learning English and for preparing for the GED test.
The library's collection has 62,000 books, newspapers, and audiovisual materials. These are for children, teens, and adults.
The town of Lancaster has about 3,507 people. The Weeks Memorial Library is proud to have about 4,000 active library card holders from the town and nearby areas.
Online Resources
The Weeks Memorial Library is part of the North Country Library Cooperative. This group is under the New Hampshire State Library. Through this, the library offers people access to many online databases and resources, such as:
Family History and Local Information
The Weeks Memorial Library has a large collection of local and family history resources. These are helpful for anyone researching their family tree or local history. This includes "The New Hampshire Collection," birth and death records, and local newspapers on microfilm. Some of the newspapers include:
- Coös County Democrat
- Coös Republican
- Groveton Advertiser
- Independent / Lancaster Gazette
- Lancaster Herald
- White Mountain Echos
- Whitefield Times
