Guilford Memorial Library news

GUILFORD — Mindy Sanborn recently became the new director at Guilford Memorial Library. Sanborn has a strong background in technology and business management. She hopes to maintain much of the home-like feeling of the library while giving patrons access to modern technologies.

The library was established in 1903 as the Library Reading Club, which soon became the Guilford Free Library. The library used space in the town office, but quickly outgrew it. The town of Guilford raised $5,000 which was matched by Andrew Carnegie to construct a new library building in 1908.

Daniel Straw donated the land upon which the library was built. In 1986 the Guilford Memorial Library was added to the National Register of Historic Places. An addition to the library, complementing the original structure was completed in 2003.

The library has continued to grow and serve the needs of the community. In 2013 the lower level meeting room was completed which allows the library to host programs and groups. The stairs leading from Water Street up to the original front entrance to the library were repaired this summer, along with additional masonry work on the chimney and brickwork. The historic building’s eaves were repaired and painted and windows in the old part of the building were replaced.

Funding for these projects was provided by grants from the Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation and the Maine Community Foundation. All the work was done by local contractors.