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Libraries weren’t always housed in stalwart buildings, nor did they always contain thousands of books. In time for National Library Week, April 6 to 12, the Friends of Pomham Rocks Lighthouse announced the newest acquisition to their museum collection – an antique traveling library box. Constructed of 1-inch pine with dovetail corners, fastened with brass hinges, this “library in a box” has sturdy brass carrying handles and, when closed, looks like a wooden suitcase. But when the two hinged doors are opened, they reveal a neat arrangement on two shelves, divided in the middle and able to hold 30 or more magazines and books, depending on size. A small shelf on the top of the unit provided space for The Book of Common Prayer and a hymnal. The purchase was made possible thanks to a grant from the Rhode Island State Senate, sponsored by Sen. Robert Britto, and fundraising events. Marked with the USLHS designation of the United States Lighthouse Service, this particular box was used during the period 1910 to 1939. The first 25 lighthouse library boxes were issued in 1876. They grew in popularity, and by 1893 there were 700 circulating among lighthouses across the country.
In lighthouses that were isolated, such as Pomham Rocks Lighthouse, off the coast of Riverside, Rhode Island, the lighthouse keepers and their families did not have easy access to books. Four times a year, the lighthouse district superintendent would come to inspect the lighthouse and to deliver food, supplies and a wooden suitcase filled with books. It was gratefully received by the lighthouse keepers and their families, to provide some welcomed entertainment after long hours of tedious work. Traveling libraries were rotated among lighthouses, so there was always a new supply of books to read each season.
The volunteer organization, Friends of the East Providence Public Library, is collaborating with the lighthouse group to provide period books to fill the empty library box. Historically, traveling libraries were stocked with a wide range of books for all ages, from novels and biographies to history and technical books. The Friends of the Library has started to stock the shelves with antiquarian selections from their Collectors’ Corner. If you have books that date from the mid-1800s to the early 1900s that you would like to donate to this project, please contact the Friends of the East Providence Public Library at epcollectors@yahoo.com or 401-742-2751. The traveling library box will be on display in the museum at Pomham Rocks Lighthouse. Visit it by booking a tour from May to August at www.pomhamrockslighthouse.com.
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