The Vermont Library Association is taking a page out of the 251 Club's playbook or, more accurately, its travel journal. The VLA has signed up 99 libraries around Vermont to issue library passports to encourage patrons to visit other Vermont libraries this summer.The Passport to Vermont Libraries adventure kicked off June 1 and runs until September 1. Participating public and academic libraries will be stamping passports and handing out small prizes. Although not every library in the state is handing out passports and issuing special stamps, patrons can still ask for a library date stamp from any Vermont library.
At the end of the summer three library patrons (one child, one young adult and one adult) who collect the most stamps will be receive Vermont Library Ambassador Awards. They'll also each win a copy of Where the Books Are, a book by Pat Belding about the history and architecture of Vermont's public libraries.
VLA President Virgil Fuller is a second generation librarian and director of Chelsea Public Library. He commented in a press release, "One of my favorite things about Vermont is the huge number of different libraries all over the state. Nearly every town has a cool library somewhere in it. We want to share our love of libraries with all Vermonters."
Here are just a few interesting facts about libraries in Vermont:
- The Alice M. Ward Memorial Library in Canaan was the northern-most U.S. stagecoach stop on a route from Franklin, N.H. to Montreal, Canada.
- The Brookfield Free Public Library is the oldest continually operating library in Vermont.
- The Windsor Public Library has an active seed lending library.
Participating patrons are encouraged to post pictures and stories to the Passport to Vermont Libraries Facebook page.
