OUR HISTORY
In January of 1891, former Eastport resident Frank Hutchinson Peavey, who had made his fortune in the grain business as head of the well-know F.H. Peavey & Company of Minneapolis, Minnesota, offered to provide funding to Eastport for a public library building in honor of his father, Albert Daniel Peavey.
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The City of Eastport accepted Peavey's offer of $10,000 and selected a prominent site on the corner of Key Street and Water Street, formerly the location of the Passamaquoddy Hotel which had been destroyed in the great fire of 1886.
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One of Boston's then-best-known architectural firms, Rotch & Tilden, created the design. Another well known firm, Miller & Ladd of Boston, was chosen for the construction. The library is a near perfect specimen of the then popular Richardsonian Romanesque style named for architect Henry Hobson Richardson. This revival style, often used for civic structures, is typified by heavy masonry massing, deeply recessed entrances, conical roofs, and wide semi-circular arches.
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Peavey provided funds for constructing the building and Eastport was responsible for providing the books. For a time the City assumed responsibility for operating expenses and maintenance. The library was later incorporated as a 501(c)(3) non-profit.
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Several of Eastport's brick buildings from this era, some held by non-profits and others held privately, are now in the process of restoration. That they still survive and are being given new life for future generations is a testament to the appreciation of historic buildings by the residents of Eastport and beyond.
Architectural historian Jon Calame has noted that the Richardsonian Romanesque style "embodied strong emotional associations. Thick masonry walls speak of durability and permanence; taut volumes imply bright and ample interiors; a broad entry arch--probably the most iconic feature of the style, and of Peavey--suggests unfettered access, inclusion and fortress-like protection afforded to the important activities transacted within. A Richardsonian library is imagined as a vault of ideas, unlocked, which all may plunder at will and walk out with all the all the treasures they can carry...What the building says so eloquently in phrases borrowed from Richardson is echoed naturally, and harmonically, by the daily activity within. It is an emblem of some of the best impulses and aspirations of a small rural community which have been nurtured constantly over a very lengthy and tumultuous period."
OUR RESTORATION PROJECT
In late 2018, slate roof issues and escalating deterioration of the Peavey's brick facade led us to seek a conditions assessment of our entire building by Knox Masonry of Bucksport. Their report indicated the necessity for a "sizeable restoration effort" due to water penetration and cracking in the bricks caused by cycles of freezing and thawing.
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In early 2019, the library's board of directors, the Eastport Public Library Association, understanding the urgency of this recommendation, engaged a consulting architect, hired a grant writer, and began a capital campaign. The Maine Historic Preservation Commission guided the board in finding approved contractors.
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Emergency repairs to some building elements, including the cupola and gutters, were undertaken while grants and other donations were sought for a comprehensive restoration of the library's exterior and some interior repairs as well.