History Of Epsom Public Library
In 1891, the New Hampshire Legislature voted to donate 100 books to any town that established a library. Two years later the voters of Epsom accepted the books and appropriated $25 to set up its first library in the Warren Store. Seven years later, construction began on our current library on a donated tract of land. It was dedicated on a rain-drenched Old Home Day, August 22, 1902. There were 815 residents of Epsom at that time and the library owned 304 books. Total cost of the new facility was $942.26.
Today the Epsom Library has a collection of 18,660 items. There are approximately 4,200 residents in town and 1,125 library patrons. In the last ten years the Library usage has increased by 38%, and is expected to rise significantly as the town continues to grow. Every square foot of space has been used and a rented trailer, adjacent to the facility, has been necessary for storage. With expansion impossible on the present site, the Town is in desperate need of a new facility. A feasibility was done in 2002, funded by the NH Charitable Foundation.
