United for Libraries to designate Lawrence Library a Literary Landmark in honor of Barbara Cooney

PEPPERELL, Mass. – United for Libraries, in partnership with the Lawrence Library Board of Trustees and the Friends of Lawrence Library, will designate the library a Literary Landmark in honor of Barbara Cooney on Saturday, May 5, at 2 p.m.

The Lawrence Library is featured in the pages of Cooney’s picture book “Miss Rumphius,” which won the National Book Award in 1983.

Cooney lived in Pepperell with her husband, Dr. Charles Talbot Porter, while he practiced medicine in town, and later moved to Damariscotta, Maine. Before her passing in 2000 at age 83, she confessed that “Miss Rumphius,” a story about a well-traveled older lady who seeks to make the world more beautiful and finds her way to do so by spreading lupine seed around her seaside dwelling, is as close to an autobiography as she might ever get.

“We are so proud to become a landmark in Cooney’s memory,” said Library Director Debra Spratt.

This program, which is free and open to the public, is sponsored by the Lawrence Library Board of Trustees and the Friends of the Lawrence Library.

The Lawrence Library is a vivid community center for more than 3,000 families in Pepperell, Mass. The building was dedicated in 1901 was a gift by Charles Farrar Lawrence, who bequeathed the funds for the purchase of the land, design, construction and the furnishing of the building.

For more information about this event, please call (978) 433-0330 or email dspratt@cwmars.org. The library is located at 15 Main Street in Pepperell.

The Literary Landmark program is administered by United for Libraries. Since the conception of the program in 1986, more than 160 Literary Landmarks across the United States have been dedicated. Any library or group may apply for a Literary Landmark through United for Libraries; visit www.ala.org/united/products_services/literarylandmarks.

United for Libraries: The Association of Library Trustees, Advocates, Friends and Foundations, is a division of the American Library Association with approximately 4,000 personal and group members representing hundreds of thousands of library supporters. United for Libraries supports those who govern, promote, advocate, and fundraise for libraries, and brings together library trustees, advocates, friends, and foundations into a partnership that creates a powerful force for libraries in the 21st century. To join, please visit www.ala.org/united or call (800) 545-2433, ext. 2161.