A Brief History of the Library
The Bennington Free Library was established in 1865 by Trenor W. Park and Seth B. Hunt, on the
corner of Main and Silver Streets in Bennington. Originally no more than a room on the second floor
“fitted up as a library” the library was run by the Young Men’s Association, established in 1865.
Membership in the association was open to all for the sum of one dollar and entitled its members to
borrow one book at a time for a two-week period. The library shared the top floor with a reading room
and a lecture hall, while the first floor, used for offices and commercial space, provided income for the
library. In 1897 the Town of Bennington voted to appropriate funds in support of the library, at which
time library materials were made available free of charge.
In the Fall of 1892, the location being judged too small and dimly lighted, library operations were
moved downstairs and expanded to three rooms, including a library proper and two smaller rooms. The
new location took advantage of the ambient light, and featured three large windows, including a large
bay window to the East, now in the Vermont History Room. On overcast days, 23 electric lights furnished
sufficient light for patrons to use the collections.
Over time the Bennington Community outgrew its small library and in 1936 a new library was constructed
adjacent to the original. Given in memory of Trenor W. Park by his son, Trenor L. Park, the new
library was built on the Park family homestead. The architect for the new library was Herbert Turner, a
descendant of the original donor, Trenor Park. The architect, anxious to produce a building that would
inspiration. Significant architectural details are reproductions from buildings in Bennington or surrounding
communities. The bricks were made from clay taken from the same beds used for the old Seminary in
Bennington, and were laid in a deliberately irregular manner. The lantern is a precise reproduction from the
Old Bennington Court House, and the windows were copied from the Palladian windows of the Hawkins
House in Shaftsbury and the Robinson House in Old Bennington. When completed, the architect was
satisfied that the building appeared to have been built in a much earlier era, and those of us lacking a
background in architectural design could easily be fooled into believing the library was built in the
mid-nineteenth century.
As the number of library patrons grew, the library was expanded and renovated to provide much needed
space in the late 1980s. A bridge between the nineteenth and twentieth century buildings was constructed,
and the original library building was returned from use as a commercial property to the use for which it
was intended. The renovation provided space for a Children’s library, a central entrance and circulation
area, handicapped access to the building, as well as public meeting rooms.
The current library attracts nearly 2,000 patron visits each week, and houses over 57,000 books,
periodicals, and research materials in a variety of formats. In addition to its growing reference and
circulating collections, the library has copies of the Bennington Banner dating back to 1903 on microfilm,
a large collection of videos, Word processing and public access Internet stations. Patrons interested in
learning to conduct research on the Internet are encouraged to sign up for a half hour session,
free of charge.
In 1996 the Hemmings Motor News Vermont History Room was dedicated, its collections comprised of
research materials relating to the history of Bennington and the state
of Vermont. See the
page for more information about its collections and hours of operation.