The year is 1874. Long before Verona was Verona. Anna DeGolier, most recently of Montreal, comes through New Jersey on her way to Ohio to visit a sister. She discovers a rural farming community and farmers’ wives in need of books and friendships. DeGolier creates a literary club for them and, in so doing, sets in motion the events that will lead to the creation of the Verona Public Library.
DeGolier’s story is told, in vivid detail, in a video for the Verona Public Library Foundation that debuted at the Foundation’s “100 Years of Carnegie” gala on October 12. The event celebrated the 100th anniversary of the building that eventually became the Library’s permanent home.
During World War I, library backers had applied for and received an $11,000 grant from the Foundation set up by steel magnate Andrew Carnegie. But construction couldn’t begin then because the the war effort had made the cost of materials and construction costs too high.
Work finally started in 1922, but there was one more hurdle to overcome before the library could open its doors. You can learn all about it by watching the video, which was created by Will Battersby, a filmmaker who is a Foundation trustee, from photos in the Library’s archives. It is narrated by Linnea Mathers, a past president of the Verona Woman’s Club.
