Author: Fred Lerner
Published: 1998
 

If you want to know all about libraries, then seek out The Story of Libraries: From the Invention of Writing to the Computer Age by Fred Lerner. It is a comprehensive history from the time of the Sumerians with their clay tablets to the current digital age.
 

If anything, the book is a bit dry in its exhaustive cataloging (pun intended) of the approaches by different cultures over thousands of years. More accessible is Libraries Through the Ages, an slimmer edited version of the above book.
 

One passage in particular is relevant to my recent musings on paper:
 

"But there are dangers in relying upon digital technology. The machinery used to convert printed publications to machine-readable form, and the media on which the resulting electronic data are stored, rapidly become obsolete. The software which interprets the electronic data is also subject to rapid change. And librarians have no experience by which to judge the permanence of electronic data. Words written on paper, parchment, or papyrus five hundred, a thousand years ago, and more, can still be read in their original form today; but we have no sure way of knowing whether a diskette or compact disc produced today will be intelligible in ten years' time." p.203

Most libraries that I visit are old, stately, even imposing. The buildings have a character, atmosphere, and materials that just aren't matched by modern methods. In the case of the Moses Greeley Parker Memorial Library, I was awed by the marriage of old and new.
 

While a social library existed in Dracut, Massachusetts in the early 19th century, a true public library was not established until 1900. Funds and land were given to the town by Moses Greeley Parker and his sister Mrs. Mary Morrison in order to construct a permanent home for the library in 1922.
 

Composed of brick with granite steps and a slate roof, the Georgian style building provided much needed space for the library.
 

From the ornate windows to the window seats and bi-level ceiling, the building shows an attention not only to the detail of the woodwork but to the necessity of light and scale. Certain spaces are innately appealing to us when we can experience a sense of ease and contemplation within them.
 

A much needed addition was created in 1979. Ironically, the old building was converted to storage a little over ten years later because of structural problems due to deferred maintenance. By the turn of the twenty-first century, plans were in hand to make major changes.
 

First, the 1979 building was demolished (which I think is the proper fate of most architecture of the 1970's). Second, the old building was restored and a new addition was built. From the outside, the curve of the new building gives a clue of the modern interior.
 

The image below is from the second floor. The old building connects to the new, opening into a soaring space. Likewise, the new entrance has a ceiling of normal height that leads into this circulating space.
 

The view up to the second floor really showcases the curve of the building.
 

Again on the second floor, spaces vary from wide open with lots of natural light to more compact like this area with the stacks.
 

The attention to detail provides surprises at every turn. One example is the carving in the wood that caps the steel bookshelves.
 

The only criticism I have is the library is too darn busy! I spoke with the reference librarian who said picture taking was fine as long as I didn't take photos of people without their permission. Since there were a lot of people using the resources of the library, my photo-journalism was limited. I hope these few pictures give a flavor of this wonderful building.
 

Sources:
Dracut's Library Heritage By John C. Catin
The Dracut Historical Society, Inc., Dracut MA, 2002

Dracut Public Library website

Those boxes revealed many treasures. There were some stories I had written on the word processor (more paper back-ups). I remember them vaguely, and if I can bear to read them I'm sure they'll end their days in the recycling bin. But it will be good to compare my writing with that of years ago.
 

Many items take me on a trip backwards in time: calendars and organizers, address and appointment books. There are journals dating back more than 30 years, and just who was that kid in 1977? The first journal had held a love note from my 6th grade girlfriend. The note is gone (thrown away after the infamous spin-the-bottle incident) but the journal still smells of the perfume which she had sprayed on the note. Try doing that with a blog.
 

There are postcards, birthday cards, wedding invitations, and many letters. As I wondered why I had kept all that stuff I came across one answer: a letter from a girl in high school who had died our senior year. Messages, marked with ink by a human hand, are more valuable to me than any e-mail.
 

Spiral bound notebooks hold stories, scenes, scraps of ideas, notes scribbled at 3am. Will these be of any use? I am reminded of Ray Bradbury who in his youth wrote down lists of words that brought forth memories that he mined for many years for his stories.
 

None of this paper needs to be decrypted or converted. No software license or terms of service hold sway over my ability to access these writings. This is not to say there aren't some disadvantages.