Claremont, NH Public Library

Hello!

First, can I just say – how on earth is it June already?  This year is flying by!

My newest vintage library postcard to share with you is for the Fiske Free Library in Claremont, NH. Claremont is a city of about 13,000 people.  Several of my family members ended up here from other parts of New Hampshire and Vermont, including my great-great-great grandmother, Bridget Higgins Ruane.  I don’t know too much about Claremont because I haven’t been there,  but I’d like to visit the next time I’m back east.

Then (unknown date, early 1900s?)

And now

Source (Current City Views album)

The postcard that I found was actually never mailed and doesn’t have a publication date on it, so not sure exactly how old it is.

The library doesn’t have its own website, but does have a small section on the City of Claremont’s website.  There is very little info on the library on the city’s website, but there is an online catalog available to search.  Librarytechnology.org states that the Fiske has over 51,000 items in its collection and circulates nearly 110,000 items per year.

According to the city’s website, the Fiske Free Library was established in 1873 at a local high school by Samuel P. Fiske with 2,000 books from his personal library.  In 1903, Andrew Carnegie contributed additional funding for a new library.  The library was added onto in 1922 and fully renovated in 1966.

Currently reading: Citadel by Kate Mosse.  If you’re paying attention, you might notice that I said I was reading this a couple of months ago.  I tried for about a week, couldn’t get into it, then set down the 700-page tome because of too much classwork.  But, now I’m back at it and enjoying it, although it took me much longer to get into than the previous two books in the trilogy.

Lancaster, NH public library

I’m a collector.  I have a lot of different collections, but one of the few that I’m still adding to is my postcards.  I’ve been collecting postcards for about three years now and I think it’s a fun, cheap way to see the world.  I’ve learned about new places and found more than a few that I’d like to visit one day.

Although I don’t usually look for vintage postcards, I thought it would be fun to start a mini collection on libraries, and compare them to how they look now.  Since I also love genealogy, I thought I would start with the ones that I have some sort of personal connection to.

First up is the Weeks Memorial Library in Lancaster, NH.  My great-great-great grandfather, Dominique Couture, lived right down the road from here in Northumberland, and was supposedly buried in Lancaster, although I haven’t been able to track that down yet.  (Coincidentally, he also passed away in 1911, the year this card was sent.)

Then – in 1911

And now

Source

The postcard was mailed August 10, 1911 to a Mr. E.E. Call in Swampscott, MA, and simply says, “All O.K. here from S.P. Congdon”.

According to its website, the existing library was finished in 1908, and an addition that tripled its size was completed in 1999.  It looks identical to 100 years ago except for the signage and the larger trees, so the expansion must be in the back of the building.  It has seven staff members, a collection of over 62,000 items, and a genealogy collection.  I’d love to access their genealogy resources, but it looks as though you can only use them in person.