A prompt from the C.H. Booth Library web page says, “We want to hear from you about what you’d like to see happen at the library in the next few years.”

Welcoming community feedback Monday afternoon, July 1, at a Listening Session was Library Director Douglas Lord. “I’m here to listen,” he said.

Asking about benefactress Mary Hawley’s furniture, which had formerly been displayed in a room at the top of the library’s main front staircase, Laurie Ricco asked, “Are we getting it back?”

She said, “I love Mary Hawley. She did so much for this town.” Ms Ricco liked “to look at her furniture,” she said.

In his book, Mary Elizabeth Hawley, historian and resident Daniel Cruson writes that after Ms Hawley’s death in 1930, her “effects … were deposited in the Cyrenius H. Booth Library … along with her furniture.”

The library is named after her maternal grandfather, Cyrenius H. Booth. Newtown has Ms Hawley to thank for Hawley School on Church Hill Road; the library; and the Edmond Town Hall, which Ms Hawley envisioned as a building for the community. Although she saw the cornerstone set in place and construction begun, the town hall was not complete at the time of her death in 1930. The building originally included a probate court, bowling alley, banquet room, theater, municipal offices, and meeting space.

Mr Lord said the Hawley furniture was in the attic.

“Will you open the attic?” Ms Ricco asked.

“The attic is not a public area,” Mr Lord said.

Ms Ricco also insisted, “Put the benches back,” while gesturing to where antique benches had been in the hallway outside the lower meeting room. A different bench now in place is “hard to use and hard to get up from.”

She also made clear she dislikes the coffee area off the main lobby. There is now “too much confusion. I used to go in and read a book, and I resent the coffee. I think, ‘Oh, they’re spilling coffee.’ Books, to me, are sacred.”

Joining the discussion were Debbie and Jack Moreno of 23 Main Street, next to the library.

More Suggestions

Ms Moreno described the dining room where Ms Hawley’s furniture had been, including a dining room table, as “more of a gallery.” The room now has various artifacts on view.

Ms Ricco wants to “keep old Colonial history,” on display, stressing that Ms Hawley was a “fantastic woman.”

Of Ms Hawley’s furniture, she stressed, “They’re treasures.”

Mr Lord said he was “on the same page” that Ms Hawley’s belongings are important.

Mr Moreno raised a different topic. “I’m very happy with what’s going on. I recommend that people come here.”

He asked about art shows from local students. “It would be nice if the library sponsored an art show,” he suggested.

He noted that for students working to gain entry to the show, it would give them “something to strive for.” Mr Lord agreed.

Gaining entry to an art show “is something to be proud of,” Mr Moreno said.

He also praised a 3D printing program at the library, then he suggested a 3D machining lathe, which is computer-operated. “You could shape material with machinery,” he said.

The machining could offer a step toward getting students interested in the trades, Mr Moreno said. “Getting kids into the trades is almost impossible.”

Conversation turned to the manufacturing industry “not getting help,” as high school students move on to college, rather than learning a skill, Mr Moreno said.

Mr Lord asked more about the machining lathe. “It would fit on a desktop,” Mr Moreno said. He believes manufacturers would donate a model to the library.

“It’s fun. [Students] could make something they could take home,” he commented.

Mr Moreno also said, “Kids get information on their phones and don’t go to the library.”

Addressing some of the earlier conversation, Mr Lord said the Mary Hawley furniture, including a dining room table, was “fragile.”

“At least bring it down for Christmas, so at least we could see it,” Ms Ricco said.

Mr Lord said the library will also be making coffee area improvements and expanding meeting areas.

“A lot of home business entrepreneurs” may not have space for meetings, he said. “I’d like it if they came here, held a meeting, had coffee,” and used the library as a productive space.

Conversation turned as Mr Moreno said, “I learned more out of college by using the library. If it wasn’t for libraries… they’ve helped me a lot. What I learned at the library kept me in business.”

Mrs Moreno asked for signs to help guests better understand the library parking.

Mr Lord said, “I think we have a decent plan,” regarding the driveways and parking issues.

Additional Listening Sessions are posted at chboothlibrary.org. Find the calendar under events and programs. Dates include Wednesday, July 10, at 5:30 pm; Friday, July 12, at 2 pm; Tuesday, July 16, at 1 pm; Monday, July 22, at 6:30 pm; and Wednesday, July 24, at 1 pm. Check the online calendar or call the library at 203-426-4533 for more information.

About The Library

A brochure, Strategic Plan 2016 — 2019, includes in its introduction, “The Cyrenius H. Booth Library was the posthumous gift of... Mary Hawley. The library opened on December 17, 1932, with a capacity of 25,000 volumes.” The library was considered, “one of the most modern libraries of its time...”

The introduction also states that an addition to the building began in 1996, with a ribbon-cutting in 1998. It states, “Today, the library staff continue to welcome” residents and visitors, offering “a wide range of services and resources.” Programs include eBook downloads, assistance with the genealogy collection, offering space for business owners to network, promoting literacy, use of a 3D printer, WiFi, best sellers, and classics.

“The library’s goal has been and always will be to provide the services the community needs and to be a place where all Newtowners are welcome,” the flyer states.

The information includes a mission statement, as approved by the Board of Trustees in April 2016. “The Cyrenius H. Booth Library’s mission is to promote the joy of lifelong learning, stimulate curiosity, support the exchange of ideas, and provide a welcoming gathering place for our community.”