Library 22: Haskell Free Library & Opera House
Where I knit in two countries at the same time.
Library 22! The Haskell Free Library & Opera House and opera house was the 22nd stop on my quest to read, write, and knit in as many of Vermont’s public libraries as I can during my sabbatical.
I read: Stacey’s Remarkable Books by Stacey Abrams
I wrote: a citation for an article I want to read by Lee Iskander (a Canadian!)
I knit: a cable and chill hat by Disturbing the Fleece (first ever cable stitch).
Look at me, knitting in two countries at once!
This library is a spectacle. The US/Canada border runs right through the building, which is marked by a black line on the floor. Facts:
There is just one entrance on the US side.
You do not need a passport or proof of citizenship to enter the library, or to cross the border line inside the library.
Canadians enter via a sidewalk on the US side, by walking through a few cement car barriers onto the sidewalk. Border patrol and cameras are watching to make sure they don’t leave the sidewalk.
All of the librarians right now are Canadian (but not always).
The library was built on the border intentionally (many people assume it was an accident).
I have a fondness for Canada, as many Vermonters do. I lived in China from 2001-2009 teaching science and English and studying Mandarin, and I would sometimes tell people I was Canadian to avoid association with US politics (Bush’s war was unpopular). I also like poutine. And universal health care.
This library has an OPERA HOUSE. The children’s librarian Evelyne (a Canadian!) gave us an excellent tour. They recently started showing movies, and there is one chair in the theater that straddles the border line, so you can watch a movie in both countries at once. It is the only movie theater in Canada without a projector, and the only movie theater in the US without a screen.
Due to the number of tourists cycling in and out, Haskell is not a place to get relaxing work done, but it is certainly a destination. This library felt unique to other libraries I have visited because of how surveilled we felt. I think of public libraries as spaces where our librarians are fighting for our rights to privacy: to read what we want without being watched. Here, the cameras, signs reminding you of the cameras, and border patrol outside gave it a 1984 vibe.
This American Life produced an episode that featured this library (although not by name). Act One of Episode 664 “The Room of Requirement” takes place here: “In Praise of Limbo.” In the episode, Zoe Chase tells how this library served as a meeting space for separated families in 2018 when the borders were difficult to cross. Despite this event that happened, signs were posted throughout the library that reminded us that family reunions are not allowed, perhaps because of this.
On this trip I was joined by my wife and also Eva Sollberger from Stuck in Vermont, a Seven Days column that features quirky things that happen in our tiny state. The episode before mine was about a family in Waterbury who really loves halloween. It was an honor to be featured in this digital treasure of quirky Vermont culture. I recommend these past episodes:
Before this day, I did not think I would meet a human whose enthusiasm for both knitting AND libraries rivaled mine, but that changed yesterday. Eva and I learned while knitting that we were both raised by flute teachers: that must be it. We sat at a craft table in the children’s room that sits on the border line, so Eva filmed (and knit!) in Canada while Lisa did a puzzle in the states. Eva wore a sweater knit by her mother and a hat she knit herself, so all three of us were wearing hand knit sweaters in a library.
Like Lisa predicted, it was the best day of my life.
You can watch the Stuck In Vermont Episode about our trip here.
You can read a Q&A with the film maker here.
Here is a shorter version from the local news station WCAX.
This is one of my favourite libraries in the entire world. My son and I visited it on a bike trip we took through Quebec and Vermont back in 2017 and it was one of the highlights for me.
Your saying many Vermonters love Canada is true at least in my case. I loved it so much that we immigrated here in 2004. I wouldn't move back for the world though Vermont is one of the only states I find myself sometimes missing. It was a great place to grow up.