The Library

When I moved to Canal Fulton in 1973, it didn't take too long to discover the Canal Fulton Public Library.  It is an imposing building, a former house, that occupies a prominent corner on Market Street, intersecting with High. 

The Daily family occupied the home and were the ones who had it built for their family.  They were in the funeral business, although the home was never used for that purpose.  The Daily family moved to Canton becoming Daily Monument and a local couple purchased the home for the purpose of a library.

It has undergone numerous renovations, with the addition of a children's room, and more recently with the complete renovation of the main floor of the house including a big change -- the all-white library was painted yellow.

Some of my earliest memories of going there included seeing the mural painted on one wall that must have been the dining room.  The stacks of books hid most of it, but you could see the mural anywhere there was an empty spot.  It made the library feel like a home.

There was a shelf-like area near the ceiling of the charge-out area of the library back in the 1970s.  On it were all sorts of things that beckoned a patron to look.  I spotted a guitar, but there was also a tracing machine, a sewing machine, and countless other familiar objects, and some not so familiar.  What were they doing there?  Tom Brownfield, the librarian, believed in having the library be a beehive of activity.  He wanted the library to be useful beyond books, so the objects on the shelf could be borrowed.  In later years, you could even borrow a have-a-heart animal trap, as I recall.  The concept of "borrowing" in this library has always been unique.

The children's librarian, Miss Filicky, continued the warm welcome with her tall stacks of comic books.  I was surprised that the library had comic books, since many libraries would consider them a poor choice.  Her response was that she would rather see children reading something than nothing.  The comic books were often the bait to get a disinterested child interested. 

The library has jigsaw puzzles on a shelf near the front desk.  Just bring one and take one.  Don't have one to give?  Bring it another time and take one anyhow.

Entering into the tech world, the library increased the number of computers for adults in the last redo.  And you can also get "books" and other media on your Kindle or other electronic reader.  They have a large section of DVDs too, as well as books on CD. 

For a time I worked at the library checking out books.  It was during the time when my sons had gone off into the world and it was quiet at the house.  I'd get there at just about 5:00 and work until 9:00 maybe two nights a week.  That was when I got to see the second floor for the first time, because that's where the employee lunch/break area is.  It was really neat to be able to look out a second floor window and imagine what it must have been like when the house was built in the 1800s.

You can google the Canal Fulton Public Library to see what it looks like.  They have a neat graphic at the top of the webpage that shows part of the library as it is today, joined with a black and white photo of what it looked like years ago. 

One of the first librarians was Miss Fletcher, and another one was Miss Bliler.  In a small town, the greatest thing is you get to know more people especially when you are nosy and curious.  I got the distinct pleasure of having tea in Miss Fletcher's kitchen while her many cats climbed here and there, and she told  me about her lambs and chickens and how one of the lambs had died the week before because it bled out when its tail was bobbed.  I got the distinct pleasure of getting to know Miss Bliler when she was retired, because she cared about the town and its history, and so did I.  She and her neighbor across the street, Catherine Hammer, were members of the Canal Fulton Heritage Society.

Character is what some people say a small town has.  And a small town also has characters -- people who are special and unique and interesting.  Canal Fulton has always had those kind of folks in spades. 

Sometimes love is fostered in a place as much as by people.  Canal Fulton is a place for me that fosters love.  And love, as the one priest said, leads us to God.

Have a beautiful Mothers' Day.  No mind about the weather -- enjoy.