The Abington Public Library serves the community as its primary information resource.  The library provides recreational reading, listening and viewing materials, and programs, for all age groups from the youngest children to senior citizens.  It provides access to resource sharing networks, the Internet, electronic books and media, and interlibrary loans, and has a vibrant on-line presence encouraging virtual use.  The library building is a welcoming community gathering place.

Voted by the Board of Library Trustees, June 18, 2002.  Revised September 14, 2009 and January 11, 2016.

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Founded in 1807, the Boston Athenæum is one of the most distinguished independent libraries and cultural institutions in the United States.

It grew out of a slightly earlier organization known as the Anthology Society which had been formed in 1805 by a group of Bostonians with the primary purpose of producing a magazine that they called The Monthly Anthology and Boston Review. In creating the Boston Athenæum, their purpose was to form “an establishment similar to that of the Athenæum and Lyceum of Liverpool in Great Britain; combining the advantages of a public library [and] containing the great works of learning and science in all languages.”

The new Athenæum flourished in culture-starved Boston and, as it voraciously acquired books, art, and artifacts, it grew rapidly. In 1827, it added an Art Gallery and began a series of yearly exhibitions of American and European art. For nearly half a century the Athenæum was the unchallenged center of intellectual life in Boston, and by 1851, had become one of the largest libraries in the United States.

Today its collections comprise over half a million volumes, with particular strengths in Boston history, New England state and local history, biography, English and American literature, and the fine and decorative arts. The Athenæum supports a dynamic exhibition program and sponsors a lively variety of events such as lectures and concerts. It also serves as a stimulating center for discussions among scholars, bibliophiles, and a variety of community interest groups.

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