Ogunquit Memorial Library

Mostly agree with the previous reviews. Impressive structure. Lovely gardens. Annoyed looking librarian probably assuming we were yet another family looking for a restroom (none, per the sign on the door). Would have been nice to feel welcomed as a family encouraging children to read on vacation, which would in turn provide future employment for librarians…
Collection and arrangement feels dated, jumbled, and somewhat cluttered yet not unlike a private family library in a grand old musty summer house. The Brittanica yearbooks from the early ‘70s seem less than relevant. Doubtful anyone will buy them for the $ 20 asking price either.
With some thoughtful rearrangement of the stacks and more comfortable seating areas, this library could be a real gem. An endowment and more public engagement by residents under 70 would also go a long way.

Stones
clocks
and
owls
The Ogunquit Library is a relatively small building that was dedicated and built in 1897. As with most libraries of the time it was constructed with private money.
I love old libraries and love old libraries made out of old stones the best. This entire building is made out of local field stones. Incredibly stunning to look at. I spent some time just walking around the lovely building admiring the work and textures of the library.
Of course having lovely gardens outside the library doesn’t exactly hurt the experience. But the library is more than just a lovely building made from cool stones and surround by beautiful flowers. Although that would probably be enough for me to give it five stars.
However to make things even better the inside of the library is lovely too. All kinds of cool things are inside; great old pictures, stuffed owls, huge grandfather clocks, lovely ceilings, rocking chairs and even a small model of the library.
It even has books, periodicals and computers but you can find those at any library. This library is definitely something special, both on the inside and out. Maine has a whole lot of very cool libraries but this one is really, really one of the most stunning.

This is the most beautiful library I have ever been to! We were driving past it on our way up to Portland from breakfast in Ogunquit, and it was so, so, so pretty that we had to stop. Admittedly, we are totally the type of nerds that will stop at a library even when we can’t check out books because we are from another state, but, in this case, we were not disappointed.
Not only is the outside gorgeous, like a stone fortress, but the inside is all vaulted ceilings and grandfather clocks. And the books! If you want the latest hot reads, you will probably be pretty disappointed. But if you want to learn anything that there is to know about Maine history, or remind yourself of what the kids were reading in 1952, there are some incredible gems here.
The place only gets four stars because the librarian seemed vaguely annoyed that we had come in and interrupted her alone time. But the huge pile of free magazines really saved the day – we availed ourselves of a bunch of back issues of Gourmet from the last three decades, and left happy.