Always a Borrower or Lender Be

Jackson's Free Public Library

In 1879, John K. Porter of Boston wrote a letter to residents of Jackson “for the information of those who may hereafter desire to know the facts regarding the origins of the Free Public Library of Jackson.” He related a simple story involving a relatively small sum of money and enthusiastic and generous townspeople.

The Jackson Public Library has a history not unlike the history of many libraries in other New England towns formed during the era when books and libraries were the major form of education, and also entertainment...except that it was started as a birthday present to a prominent innkeeper, General Marshall C. Wentworth, was encouraged and helped by a well-known artist, Frank Shapleigh, and designed by a famous Boston architect, William Ralph Emerson.

The village of Jackson was originally chartered in 1778 as Adams. Early settlers in the valley formed by the Wildcat Brook were obviously intent on self-improvement, and on June 20, 1827, the state of New Hampshire approved an act to incorporate the Adams Social Library Society (a name still on the records in Concord until this year when the library board of trustees first learned of it and applied to the state to have it renamed as the Jackson Public Library).

“The society must have been just a reading group,” said Priscilla Bissell, current librarian at the Jackson Library, “because we have no record of them having any special meeting place or a supply of books.”

Adams changed its name to Jackson in 1829 and in the next 50 years, started expanding as a resort area. Inns and lodges were constructed to accommodate the many visitors who flocked to enjoy the fresh air, mountain scenery, and clear running brooks and streams. One of the most successful of these, the Thorn Mountain House (later known as Wentworth Hall), was constructed by Joshua Trickey and run by his son-in-law, the congenial and popular General Wentworth.

It became the custom of inn guests and townspeople to raise money each year and present the general, who was a prodigious reader, with a gift of books for his birthday. In 1879, as Porter's letter related, there was a surplus of $7.35 after the annual birthday presentation, and so, on August 16th of that year, Porter, who was vacationing for the summer at the Thorn Mountain House, called a meeting of interested summer and year 'round Jackson residents and proposed that the money be used “as a nucleus for a Free Public Library for the Town of Jackson.”

Unanimous consent was given to Porter's idea, at which point he informed those present that they could contribute to the fund. It immediately increased to a whopping $12.35 as five more names were enrolled among the founders of the library.

Donations of books were also requested and General Wentworth was among those who generously shared their private collections with the town of Jackson. Rules and regulations were formulated and the library’s growing collection of books was housed in the general’s hotel in the summer, and, as Wentworth Hall closed for the winter, in the town hall for the colder months.

As the number of volumes increased, it soon became obvious that a permanent home was needed for the library's collection, and over the years more money was raised for that purpose.

Enter Shapleigh, renowned White Mountain artist. During the 1800s, not only were the White Mountains attracting scores of vacationers, they were also attracting artists. Shapleigh often stayed at Wentworth Hall and had been the artist-in-residence at the Crawford House in Crawford Notch from 1877 until 1893. After operating a studio in Florida for a number of years and traveling extensively in Europe, he and his wife returned to their beloved Jackson in 1896 and began construction on a new summer home on a tract of land overlooking the village.

A friend and well-known architect, William Ralph Emerson of Boston, designed the "cottage" named Maple Knoll by its owners. Shapleigh's friend and fellow painter Benjamin Champney described the shingled structure as follows: “...it is situated just back of the Jackson Falls House, but is higher and farther up the road so the outlook towards the south includes the fine outline of the Moat and the lovely valley below. The cottage is unique in architecture, painted in a soft gray tone which harmonizes pleasantly with the near surrounding foliage...”

Emerson was a popular architect of the late 1800s whose expertise lay in designing homes especially suited to their site. Often utilizing decorative shingle work, Emerson's houses, which ranged from the Boston area to the coast of Maine to the mountains of New Hampshire, offered verandas, decks, bay windows, turrets, and cleverly placed nooks, all designed to give their inhabitants a better view of their surroundings.

Upon completion of his residence, Shapleigh (or his wife) requested Emerson to design a small library for the town. The site had already been chosen. It would be on the west side of the Wildcat Brook, overlooking the water and facing Wentworth Hall. Emerson’s design, though small, included a gambrel roof, decorative shingle work, an inviting bay window and window seat overlooking the flowing brook, and beautiful natural wood panels and beams to make up the trussing system inside.

On Oct. 22, 1900, construction began on the little building. The town raised $500 of the $1800 total needed, and the rest was paid for by subscriptions and donations. The new building was open to the public on Aug. 1, 1901, and has been in operation ever since.

In 1930 the tiny building had to be moved, as it stood in the way of progress. The road through the village of Jackson was being straightened a bit, and instead of turning at the town hall, going over the brook and turning again at the church, it was going to go over the brook further down, putting the library directly in its path. The Protestant Chapel Associa-tion consented to having it moved to its property, and the red-shingled Jackson Library building now sits directly beside the church. By moving and turning the structure, however, the lovely bay window at the rear of the building no longer looks out over the brook as Emerson had intended.

The library enjoyed great popularity over the years. Its hours were not many, but satisfactory--11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesdays and Thursdays, and 7 to 9 Thursday evenings. The most regular use was by the school children of Jackson who came over weekly to peruse some of the approximately 5000 volumes housed in the small structure.

It's easy to miss the Jackson Public Library when driving through town on Route 16 A. You have to take special care not to just drive by as you go over the brook, because the library is worth stopping to see. Take a minute to look at the tiny building, sit on the benches in the front, or go inside to look at the beautiful woodwork and admire the construction. “They called me out of retirement to come here and work,” said Bissell, “but I really enjoy it. It's just a delightful place to work.”

Editor's Note: In 2010 the Jackson Public Library moved to the restored Trickey Barn which had been moved to the Gray's Inn property near the town office. The old library remains at its historic location.