Blanding Free Public Library is the public library for the Town of Rehoboth. The Library building and Goff Hall are owned and managed by the Rehoboth Antiquarian Society.
Our Story.
When the Rehoboth Antiquarian Society (RAS) was founded in 1885, funds were raised to build a memorial hall including an antiquarian room, public hall, schoolroom, and library. Reverend George H. Tilton, the first president of the RAS, reached out to Thomas W. Bicknell of Dorchester, Massachusetts, and his wife, the former Amelia Davie Blanding, advising them of the plans for the building and inviting contributions to the project.
The Bicknells were keenly interested in the project and donated $500 for books for the new library, with the request that the library be named The Blanding Public Library of Rehoboth, Massachusetts, honoring Amelia’s parents, Christopher and Chloe Blanding and the long history of the Blanding family in Rehoboth. They wrote, “We believe that a good library is one of the most valuable means of education.”
Blanding Library was opened to the public February 26, 1886 with approximately six hundred and twenty-five volumes. In addition to the $500 donated by the Bicknells, money for books was donated by the citizens of Rehoboth. The first librarian was William H. Luther, also the custodian of the antiquarian room.
Darius Goff of Pawtucket contributed the acre of land and a significant portion of the building costs. The location was the Old Goff Inn, the homestead of his father dating back to colonial times. The first Goff Memorial Hall was struck by lightning and burned on July 7, 1911. Books from the library and relics from the antiquarian room were saved and stored at Shady Bend, the old mill office. A new Goff Memorial Hall was dedicated on May 10, 1915.
Since 1915, the building has been modified to add ramp access to the front door. An addition providing accessible restrooms on the main floor and access to the lower level was completed in 2016.
The librarians of Blanding Free Public Library are:
- William H. Luther, 1886–
- William H. Marvel
- Mrs. Joseph Arnold
- Mrs. Frank Thomas
- Mrs. Charles Fuller
- Miss Annie Goff
- Mrs. Edward Goff
- Mrs. Robert R. (Juliet I.) Mansfield, 1941–1991
- Christine Horlbeck, 1991–1998
- Laura Bennett, 1998–2017
- Whitney Pape, 2017 to present
Our Staff.
Whitney Pape
Library Director
Whitney has served as the Library’s director since 2017. She has previously served as Special Collections and Preservation Librarian at Oberlin College, National Endowment for the Humanities Preservation Librarian at Brown University, Lecturer in the preservation of library materials for the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Library and Information Studies, the Ezra Stiles Special Collections Librarian at the Redwood Library and Athenaeum, Reference and Instruction Librarian at Quinsigamond Community College, Interim Pembroke Archivist at Brown University, and as a Children’s Librarian, Community Engagement Librarian, Digital Resources Librarian, and Teen Librarian at Pawtucket Public Library.
Catherine Charbonneau
Children’s Librarian
Miss Cathy has worked at Blanding Free Public Library since 1993, starting as a storytime presenter and serving as the Library’s first—and so far, only—Children’s Librarian.
Susan Robert
Head of Circulation
Working in her family’s retail business for 18 years doing anything and everything prepared Susan for her current position as Head of Circulation. Joining the Blanding staff in 2003 as a circulation staff member, Susan enjoys exchanges with our patrons and helping them find their next read.
Sharon Beskid
Head of Community Engagement
Sharon has worked at the Library since 2009, starting as one of our brilliant circulation staff members and now assisting with organizing programs and community outreach.
We have three other circulation staff members ready to help you:
Mary Rihbany, Meredith Richards, and Jennifer Brochu.
Tot Time is brought to you by Joyce Lima on Tuesdays at 10:30 a.m.
Give us a call at (508) 252-4236 during open hours.