On Tuesday, February 27th, the Topsfield Town Library celebrates the 25th anniversary of the opening of the library’s addition!
The following is from our library’s history page. Visit it for more information about the library’s history, pictures, and a timeline, as we begin celebrations of our 150th anniversary later this year!
In 1988, the Library received surprising news. The will of George L. Gould, an original contributor to the 1935 building, was revealed. Mr. Gould had drawn up his will in 1921, but his bequest to the library was not revealed until his last living heir, Rosamond Gould Childs, died at 100 years of age. Library Trustees were notified that the bequest was significant. Gould’s will expressed “his strong conviction that the Topsfield Town Library should not only be a repository of the printed word but also a cultural center promoting the aesthetic in the lives of Topsfield residents.”
Topsfield’s population continued to increase and the building was not ADA compliant; smaller scale renovations in the 1960s and 1970s proved insufficient for a modern library. It was decided an addition to the 1935 building was needed.
The addition was funded by the Gould Trust, a grant from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and the people of Topsfield. Groundbreaking day came on November 7, 1997. Two hundred residents helped staff move 7,000 paper bags of books to and from the Library’s temporary location in the Topsfield Village Shopping Center. The Library reopened on February 27, 1999 amid much celebration.
