Oliver Ames (1831 - 1895) was a hometown benefactor who was, in a sense, the Carnegie before Carnegie. His bequest of $50,000 to establish and maintain a library in a town of farmers and shovel makers was groundbreaking. In the 132 years since its inception, the village library evolved so that by 2011 when Money magazine selected the top towns to live in the US, the Ames Free Library was specifically singled out as a factor in their selection of Easton.
The Ames Free Library campus has expanded over the years, to include not only the original H.H. Richardson-designed Library building, but also the adjacent, English Gothic-style cottage Queset House. This 1853 mansion has been reimagined as the Learning Commons @ Queset House, an entire building devoted to facilitating community connections and promoting learning for patrons of all ages. Queset's beautiful Italianate garden is the setting for countless community events.
The Library Board of Directors and staff are proud to be custodians of these beautiful Library campus properties and to offer a rich range of cultural learning opportunities to visitors. Below, you can see a timeline of our continual efforts to preserve and improve what is arguably Easton's most valuable historical and cultural asset.
2016
- Named Best Small Library in America finalist by Library Journal and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
2013
- Awarded State of Massachusetts Community Innovation Challenge Grant to create Learning Commons @ Queset House
- Received Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners' "Next Step" grant for "Boomer Generation" programs
- Received Community Preservation Act grant for Queset Garden reflecting pool and Queset House accessibility renovations
2011
- Named Best Small Library in America finalist by Library Journal and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
- Received Community Preservation Act grant funding (Phase 2) for restoration of Queset Garden's historic stage, arbor, and creation of access ramps
2010
- Community Preservation Act funded Phase 1 of Queset Garden renovation
- Natural Resources Trust presented first Elise Ames Parker Conservation Award to the Library for programs on children and nature
2009
- Winner of Easton Historical Society's Briggs Award for preservation of H.H. Richardson building
- Received "Easton Reads Together" grant from Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners