Local History Room Hours

Tuesday:  3:00 p.m.- 4:30 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Friday:  9:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

Saturday:  9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

*These hours are dependent on the availability of the Local History librarian.  

Please call the library @ (508) 210-5569 before you come. 

local history question banner

For local history or genealogy questions, you can email our local history librarian, Nancy Richards, directly.  Be sure to put the phrase “local history” in the subject line so that Nancy can address your inquiry accordingly. We are happy to answer questions related, but not limited to: genealogy, burials, old-house records, newspapers, photographs, early Holden history, Gale Free Library history, and much more.

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Starting to research your own family history?  

Here are a few great links and resources to get you started.

We subscribe to the following databases for Holden patron use:

Free databases to start your genealogy search:

Gale Family Deed of Gift

The Deed of Gift to the Town of Holden

“…a Free Public Library and Reading-room for the use and enjoyment of all the inhabitants [of Holden]….”

The Damon Memorial building, which is the home of the Gale Free Library, was the gift of Samuel C. Gale and his wife, Susan Damon Gale. Mr. Gale had been a teacher at the Holden Center School. The building was named in honor of Mrs. Gale’s family, the Damons, who had been active members of the Holden community for many years. The Gale Free Library was named in memory of Mr. Gale’s family. The Damon Memorial building was dedicated on August 29, 1888, and the Trustees still function under the original deed of gift.

The Deed of Gift to the Town of Holden of THE DAMON MEMORIAL
from Samuel C. Gale and his wife, Susan Damon Gale
August 22, 1888

In 1888, Samuel C. Gale and his wife, Susan Damon Gale, presented the people of Holden with a beautiful custom-built stone library and its land in the center of town. Still standing and thriving in its original purpose, the building is named the Damon Memorial in honor of Susan’s family. The institution within is known as the Gale Free Library. The Gales’ deed of gift establishes “In trust forever hereafter…a Free Public Library and Reading-room for the use and enjoyment of all the inhabitants for the time being of said town, and of such other persons as said town for the time being shall, by general rule or special permit allow to use the same….”

The deed further provides that a portion of the building shall temporarily serve as a public high school, until a dedicated building for that purpose can be built (as happened in 1926).

The Gales’ magnificent gift comes with a number of conditions intended to guarantee that the building, grounds, and library be maintained and continue to serve the people of Holden in perpetuity. The document specifies that “upon the failure of the grantee to carry out and perform all and singular the terms, conditions and stipulations mentioned in this deed, the title to the real estate herein conveyed shall revert to the grantors and their heirs.”

historic photo of the gale free library build made of stones with a tower in the front

Damon Memorial Building

damon memorial

Stephen C. Earle of Worcester, the architect, was well-known throughout New England. His work was influenced by Henry Hobson Richardson, who introduced the Romanesque Revival period of architecture. Thus, the Damon Memorial may be identified as Richardsonian Romanesque in design. The building was planned to meet the Gales’ requirement that it be both the Town’s high school and public library.

The original building is constructed of locally quarried granite, with brown sandstone from Longmeadow, Massachusetts, added for the sills, lintels, and arches. Black slate from Maine was used on the roof, and red slate on the tower roof.

In 1926, the high school moved into its new building, separate from the Library. As the town grew, the library services spread into all areas of the original building. In addressing the need for additional space, the Trustees planned a renovation/addition project. In 1988, at the Annual Town Meeting, voters approved the 2.2 million dollar project. The Town was awarded a state grant of $200,000 in support of this project as well.

Jacques Fauteux, a former Holden resident, was the architect for the renovation/addition. The outer wall of the addition is of morning rose granite from the Rock of Ages Corporation quarries in Barre, Vermont. The roof is of copper-colored metal.

Today the building lies within the Holden Center Historic District and is listed also in the National Register of Historic Places.