Waterford Library

Waterford Library The Library is available for use of community groups (school, government, business, religious, political, cultural) for classes, meetings and lectures. Mrs.

History

Prior to 1899, the Ladies Sewing Circle of Waterford carried on a lending library at the Knight store, run by Sarah and Carrie Knight. In 1899, the Circle incorporated as the Ladies Library Association of Waterford, electing Sarah Knight as its first librarian. Three years later, Mrs. Florence Rounds was elected assistant librarian. Interest in the library grew and more room was needed fo

r books. The Knight sisters began construction of a stone building on the front of their lot, but both died only a few weeks apart in August 1911. In 1912 the old association turned its property over to the newly formed Waterford Library Association. Rounds was chosen as the new librarian and she appointed Miss Charlotte Morse (Fillebrown) as her assistant librarian. On Oct. 1, 1937 a fire destroyed the Knight Store, part of the library and other nearby buildings. Renovations to the library were made in early 1938. The association received the deed to the land where the store had been, a gift from Albert Rice, Mabel Gage and Dr. Bishop. That land now houses the Rice Museum, moved from Rice Hill to the site in 1978. In South Waterford, the Bear Mountain Library Association was started in 1928, along with the Community Club, which supported the library for 48 years. The Library was moved to the first floor of the home of Flora Hamlin Abbott, a great benefactor of the library along with her sister, Alice Hamlin Warren. On September 30, 1994, the Bear Mountain Library merged with the Waterford Library in the Flat. The consolidation leaves the town with one library serving all Waterford residents. The library is a Colonial Revival style building designed by noted Portland architect John Calvin Stevens and his son John Howard Stevens. This firm was also responsible for the rebuilding of the second story after the 1937 fire. The library is part of the Waterford Flats Historic District.

Come and Celebrate Spring with Us! Saturday, April 4, 2026 at 2PM Sharp.
04/01/2026

Come and Celebrate Spring with Us! Saturday, April 4, 2026 at 2PM Sharp.

HOLIDAY HOURSDecember 24, 2025 CLOSEDDecember 25, 2025 CLOSEDDecember 26, 2025 CLOSEDDecember 31, 2025 CLOSEDJanuary 1, ...
12/19/2025

HOLIDAY HOURS

December 24, 2025 CLOSED
December 25, 2025 CLOSED
December 26, 2025 CLOSED
December 31, 2025 CLOSED
January 1, 2026 CLOSED

Come celebrate the season with community and get a gently used book at the same time!
12/05/2025

Come celebrate the season with community and get a gently used book at the same time!

11/27/2025

Please note that the Library will not be open the day after Thanksgiving, Friday November 27, 2025.

Have a happy and safe Thanksgiving holiday!

Join us at our annual special event to mark the season! All are welcome!!
11/26/2025

Join us at our annual special event to mark the season! All are welcome!!

Come in and check out a selection of books from our collection that have been banned or challenged over the years!READ F...
10/08/2025

Come in and check out a selection of books from our collection that have been banned or challenged over the years!

READ FOR YOUR RIGHTS!

09/26/2025

Save the date! Thursday, November 6th at Mast Landing Brewing Company in Westbrook, Maine!

09/24/2025

PLEASE NOTE:

THE LIBRARY WILL BE CLOSED TUESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2025
FOR MAINTENANCE ON THE HEAT PUMPS.

WE APOLOGIZE FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE.

THE LIBRARY WILL RESUME NORMAL HOURS ON WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2025.

Two Butterflies went out at Noon—And waltzed above a Farm— Then stepped straight through the Firmament And rested on a B...
09/12/2025

Two Butterflies went out at Noon—
And waltzed above a Farm—
Then stepped straight through the Firmament
And rested on a Beam—

And then—together bore away
Upon a shining Sea—
Though never yet, in any Port—
Their coming mentioned—be—

If spoken by the distant Bird—
If met in Ether Sea
By Frigate, or by Merchantman—
No notice—was—to me—

Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)

Photo Credit: Tom Hammett

08/01/2025

Mark the date in your calendars for this fun-filled day as The Waterford Library shows appreciation for our marvelous community! Food, games, and MUSIC!! August 10, 3-6 PM, BBQ served at 4:30 PM.

Hopefully Mary Moody Emerson is significantly acknowledged.
07/26/2025

Hopefully Mary Moody Emerson is significantly acknowledged.

My book, "Emerson’s Daughters," is a biography of a sisterhood. Ellen Tucker Emerson and Edith Emerson Forbes, the daughters of Lidian Jackson and Ralph Waldo Emerson, formed a partnership to tend to their father’s career and care for their parents as they aged while developing their own lives and interests. They maintained this bond even after Edith married, moved to Milton, Massachusetts, and had eight children. Building on archival research into the sisters’ correspondence, this book adds to the growing body of work on women’s contribution to Transcendentalism while opening a window onto the rich, and understudied, family life of the ‘Sage of Concord.’

"Emerson’s Daughters" could not exist without Houghton. Ellen’s half of the sisters’ correspondence is held by the Library, along with extensive Emerson family papers. The sisters, who were celebrated as correspondents by their circle, wrote one another long ‘journal letters,’ which hold not only rich biographical material but also invaluable 19th-century cultural history. Houghton’s 2015–2016 Ralph Waldo Emerson Fellowship for the Study of Emerson and his Circle gave me the time to read through these wonderful letters and give them the attention they deserve. I hope this book brings more scholars to them.

— Kate Culkin

Kate’s book was published by University of Massachusetts Press and is out now.

07/23/2025

"Sharps on the Flat" in conjunction with Sebago Long Lake Music Festival presents an evening of music Thursday, July 24, 7PM at the Waterford Congregational Church.

String Trio Featuring: Juliette Kang (Violin), Ramon Carrero-Martinez (Viola), and Thomas Kraines (Cello)

The program includes pieces by J. S. Bach, Thomas Kraines, Max Reger, and Erno Dohnanyi

7:00-7:45 pm: Candlelight concert – Waterford Congregational Church, 15 Plummer Hill Rd., Waterford.

Free and Open to the Public. Donations are welcome.

Address

663 Waterford Road
North Waterford, ME
04088

Opening Hours

Monday 2pm - 6pm
Tuesday 10:30am - 12:30pm
Wednesday 3pm - 8pm
Friday 10am - 12pm
Saturday 10am - 2pm

Telephone

+12075832050

Website

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