This is a list of libraries in 18th-century

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. It includes

subscription The subscription business model is a business model in which a customer must pay a recurring price at regular intervals for access to a product or service. The model was pioneered by publishers of books and periodicals in the 17th century, and ...

rental Renting, also known as hiring or letting, is an agreement where a payment is made for the temporary use of a good, service or property owned by another. A gross lease is when the tenant pays a flat rental amount and the landlord pays for al ...

medical Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practic ...

, church, and

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...

libraries. In general, it excludes book collections of private individuals. ;

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...

(est. 1780) * W.P. & L. Blake's Circulating Library, Boston *

Boston Library Society The Boston Library Society was an American subscription library established in New England's pre-eminent city, Boston, during 1792. Early subscribers included Revolutionary War figures Paul Revere and William Tudor. The society existed until 1939 ...

(est.1792) * Christ Church *

Benjamin Guild Benjamin Guild (1749-1792) was a bookseller in Boston, Massachusetts, in the late 18th century. He ran the "Boston Book Store" and a circulating subscription library in the 1780s and 1790s at no.59 Cornhill, "first door south of the Old-Brick Mee ...

's circulating library, Boston *

King's Chapel King's Chapel is an American independent christianity, Christian unitarianism, unitarian congregation affiliated with the Unitarian Universalist Association that is "unitarian Christian in theology, anglicanism, Anglican in worship, and congrega ...

* William Martin's Circulating Library, Boston * Massachusetts Historical Library,

Massachusetts Historical Society The Massachusetts Historical Society is a major historical archive specializing in early American, Massachusetts, and New England history. The Massachusetts Historical Society was established in 1791 and is located at 1154 Boylston Street in Bost ...

, Boston *

Massachusetts Medical Society The Massachusetts Medical Society (MMS) is the oldest continuously operating state medical association in the United States. Incorporated on November 1, 1781, by an act of the Massachusetts General Court, the MMS is a non-profit organization th ...

* John Mein's Circulating Library, Boston * New England Library, collected by Thomas Prince * William Pelham's circulating library * Town Library, in the Town-House, King St. ;

Boylston, Massachusetts Boylston is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 4,849 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. History Boylston was first settled by Europeans around 1706 in the nor ...

* Social Library, Boylston Center (est.1792) ;

Bridgewater, Massachusetts Bridgewater is a town located in Plymouth County, in the state of Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the town's population was 28,633. Bridgewater is located approximately south of Boston and approximately 35 miles east ...

* Library in the East Precinct of Bridgewater ;

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...

Harvard College Library Harvard Library is the umbrella organization for Harvard University's libraries and services. It is the oldest library system in the United States and both the largest academic library and largest private library in the world. Its collection ...

;

Concord, Massachusetts Concord () is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, in the United States. At the 2020 census, the town population was 18,491. The United States Census Bureau considers Concord part of Greater Boston. The town center is near where the conflu ...

* Charitable Library Society, Concord (est.1795) ;

Dorchester, Massachusetts Dorchester (colloquially referred to as Dot) is a Boston neighborhood comprising more than in the City of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Originally, Dorchester was a separate town, founded by Puritans who emigrated in 1630 from Dorchester ...

* Dorchester Library ;

Douglas, Massachusetts Douglas is a town in Southern Worcester County, Massachusetts. The population was 8,983 at the 2020 census. It includes the sizable Douglas State Forest, managed by the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR). History The name of Dou ...

* Douglas Social Library Association (est.1799) ;

Falmouth, Massachusetts Falmouth ( ) is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 32,517 at the 2020 census, making Falmouth the second-largest municipality on Cape Cod after Barnstable. The terminal for the Steamship Authority ferri ...

* First Congregational Church Library, Falmouth ;

Franklin, Massachusetts The Town of Franklin is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Franklin is one of thirteen Massachusetts municipalities that have applied for, and been granted, city forms of government but wish to retain "The town of" in their o ...

* Franklin Library (est.1786) ;

Groton, Massachusetts Groton is a town in northwestern Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, within the Greater Boston metropolitan area. The population was 11,315 at the 2020 census. It is home to two prep schools: Lawrence Academy at Groton, founded in 17 ...

* Groton First Parish Library (est.1793) ;

Haverhill, Massachusetts Haverhill ( ) is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. Haverhill is located 35 miles north of Boston on the New Hampshire border and about 17 miles from the Atlantic Ocean. The population was 67,787 at the 2020 United States Cen ...

* Haverhill Library ;

Hingham, Massachusetts Hingham ( ) is a town in metropolitan Greater Boston on the South Shore of the U.S. state of Massachusetts in northern Plymouth County. At the 2020 census, the population was 24,284. Hingham is known for its colonial history and location on B ...

* First Social Library, Hingham Centre (est.1771) ;

Lancaster, Massachusetts Lancaster is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, in the United States. Incorporated in 1653, Lancaster is the oldest town in Worcester County. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 8,441. History In 1643 Lancaster was first ...

* Lancaster Library (est.1790) ;

Leicester, Massachusetts Leicester ( ) is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts. The population was 11,087 at the 2020 United States Census. History What is now Leicester was originally settled by the Nipmuc people and was known by them as ''Towtaid''. On January 27 ...

* Leicester Social Library Company (est.1793) ;

Leominster, Massachusetts Leominster ( ) is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the second-largest city in Worcester County, with a population of 43,782 at the 2020 census. Leominster is located north of Worcester and northwest of Boston. Both ...

* Social Library, Leominster (est.1763) ;

Lincoln, Massachusetts Lincoln is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts. The population was 7,014 according to the 2020 United States Census, including residents of Hanscom Air Force Base that live within town limits. The town, located in the MetroWest region o ...

* Lincoln Social Library (est.1798) ;

Lunenburg, Massachusetts Lunenburg is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,946 at the 2020 census. History Lunenburg was first settled by Europeans in 1718 and was officially incorporated in 1728. The name stems from one of t ...

* Lunenburg Social Library (est.1792) ;

Marlborough, Massachusetts Marlborough is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 41,793 at the 2020 census. Marlborough became a prosperous industrial town in the 19th century and made the transition to high technology industry in the ...

* Social Library, Marlborough ;

Medfield, Massachusetts Medfield is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 12,799 according to the 2020 United States Census. It is a community about southwest of Boston, Massachusetts, which is a 40- ...

Medfield Social Library The Medfield Social Library (est.1786) was a proprietary library in Medfield, Massachusetts. It incorporated in 1809. By 1816 it consisted of some 700 volumes, among them ''The Panoplist'', Mary Pilkington's ''Mirror for Females'', Susanna Rowson ...

(est.1786) ;

Middleton, Massachusetts Middleton is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 9,779 at the 2020 census. History Middleton was first settled in 1659, and was officially incorporated in 1728. Prior to 1728 it was considered a part o ...

* Social library, Middleton (est.1772) ;

Newburyport, Massachusetts Newburyport is a coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, northeast of Boston. The population was 18,289 at the 2020 census. A historic seaport with vibrant tourism industry, Newburyport includes part of Plum Island. The mo ...

* First Social Library, Newburyport * Newburyport Book-Store circulating library * Newburyport Library * George Jerry Osborne's circulating library, "at his shop, Guttemberg's Head" Newburyport ;

Newton, Massachusetts Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is approximately west of downtown Boston. Newton resembles a patchwork of thirteen villages, without a city center. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the population of Ne ...

* Newton Library Society ;

Oxford, Massachusetts Oxford is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 13,347 as of the 2020 United States Census. History Oxford was first settled in 1687 and was officially incorporated in 1713. It was the birthplace of Clara ...

* Social Library, Oxford ;

Pittsfield, Massachusetts Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfield� ...

* Pittsfield Library Society ;

Rowe, Massachusetts Rowe is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 424 at the 2020 census. History Rowe was the site of fishing and foraging for local Native American tribes. The area was first visited by white settlers in 1 ...

* Rowe Social Library (est.1797) ;

Royalston, Massachusetts Royalston is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,250 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. History Royalston is a small town in the North Quabbin Reservoir, Qu ...

* Library Company of Royalston (est.1778) ;

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, located on the North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem would become one of the most significant seaports tr ...

* William Carlton's circulating library, Salem *

John Dabney __NOTOC__ John Dabney (1752–1819) was a postmaster, publisher, and bookseller in Salem, Massachusetts, in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He was born in Boston in 1752 to Charles Dabney and Elizabeth Gardner. With Thomas C. Cushing, J ...

's circulating library, Salem *

Philosophical Library {{Infobox publisher , name = Philosophical Library , image = , caption = , parent = , status = , traded_as = , predecessor = , founded = 1941 , founder = Dagobert D. Runes , successor ...

, Salem (est.1781) * Social Library, Salem (est.1760) ;

Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is a city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States, and the seat of Hampden County. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ...

* Springfield Library Company ;

Wareham, Massachusetts Wareham ( ) is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town had a population of 23,303. History Wareham was first settled in 1678 by Europeans as part of the towns of Plymouth, Massachusetts, Plymouth ...

* Wareham Social Library ;

Watertown, Massachusetts Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, and is part of Greater Boston. The population was 35,329 in the 2020 census. Its neighborhoods include Bemis, Coolidge Square, East Watertown, Watertown Square, and the West End. Watertown ...

* Union Library Society (est.1779) ;

Westford, Massachusetts Westford is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was at 24,643 at the time of the 2020 Census. History Westford began as 'West Chelmsford', a village in the town of Chelmsford. The village of West Chelmsfor ...

* Social library, Westford (est.1797) ;

Williamstown, Massachusetts Williamstown is a town in the northern part of Berkshire County, in the northwest corner of Massachusetts, United States. It shares a border with Vermont to the north and New York to the west. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolit ...

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams, a col ...

Library ;

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...

* Worcester Circulating Library CompanyRules and regulations of the Worcester Associate Library Company. 1793 * Worcester District Medical Library (est.1798)

References

External links

Princeton University
Davies Project. American Libraries before 1876. {{books

Libraries A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...

Libraries in Massachusetts

Libraries, 18th century

See also

References

External links