Sponsor a Year of the Observer!
By Jon Knepp, Director, Thompson Free Library
The digital archive maintained by the Thompson Free Library and the Dover-Foxcroft Historical Society (found at: www.doverfoxcroft.advantage-preservation.com) is a tremendous resource for our community! And now, we are looking for help to make it even better by rescanning the Piscataquis Observer collection between 1921 and 1986. Because of badly damaged microfilm, you cannot search through the paper for names, towns, or really anything. Through donors willing to sponsor a year of the Observer for $100, we can redigitize these vital pieces of our county’s history and make them fully searchable for local historians, geneaologists, families and anyone who wants to research the rich history of our wonderful county! Donations are accepted by mail via check, in-person at the library via cash, card, or check, or online via credit, debit, or PayPal using the button below:
The archive was created to house all of the FA yearbooks (1940-2021) as well as all of the county’s newspapers from 1838 to 2019. Unfortunately, when the archive was created, it was made with a well-used, very scratched copy of microfilm. When scanned, entire lines went missing. e’s scanned in as c’s or vice versa. You can read the images, but searching is useless. Even The Piscataquis Observer itself became “The Piscatarus Qhseg ‘et.”
Starting with the 1987 paper, the Observer became the Observer again. The film was undamaged and you can once again search for anything through the search bar! Having worked in digitization projects for 17 years, I was always frustrated with the low quality of the searchable text in the archive and have always wanted to improve it! There just wasn’t an easy way until now. Recently, the historical society uncovered completely untouched microfilm, which, if rescanned and used to replace the current digital versions, will mean the text is searchable, making historical research much easier and more accessible. No more leafing through pages of the Observer to find an obituary. The search bar will lead you right to it!
Unfortunately, rescanning will be costly! By sponsoring the cost of a year’s digitization for $100, we can all work together to preserve this resource and make it accessible! Purchase the birth year of you or a relative, your anniversary, your class at FA. Any reason is a good reason to help out your community! For more information, reach out at 564-3350, email director@thompsonfreelibrary.org, or stop in and chat about it at 186 E. Main St. Dover-Foxcroft, Maine 04426.
New Books at the TFL
Check out the newest books at the TFL!
Click here to see new books by genre
We are excited to offer Biblio+, a free streaming video stream service for our patrons.
Sign up with your library card at https://biblioplus.com/library/thompsonfreelibrary.org to start streaming their selection of films and TV series today! The biblio+ app is available for download on almost any device: Apple (iPhone, iPad, Apple TV), Android phone and tablet, Amazon devices, Fire TV, Roku, and others or stream directly from www.biblioplus.com. You’ll just need your library card number (contact us if you forget it!) and your email. We can also assist patrons in setting up Biblio+ on their devices.
Biblio+ provides popular and award-winning shows, movies, and documentaries with more being added every month. The service isn’t meant to compete with the giants spending billions to offer seemingly endless options in the streaming space, like Netflix or HBO Max. Instead, it is a highly-curated service hoping to provide what you want to watch, rather than everything you could ever watch. Recently, a large collection of BBC offerings were added, including the original British version of The Office, Call the Midwife, The Young Doctor’s Notebook, Wallander, and more. Other content such as literary adaptations, documentaries, and independent award winners are constantly refreshing the options available.
NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
Sponsor a Year of the Observer May 3, 2024 - By Jon Knepp, Director, Thompson Free Library The digital archive maintained by the Thompson Free Library and the Dover-Foxcroft Historical Society (found at: www.doverfoxcroft.advantage-preservation.com) is a tremendous resource for our community! And now, we are looking for help to make it even better by rescanning the Piscataquis Observer collection between 1921 and 1986. Because of badly damaged microfilm, you cannot search through the paper for names, towns, or really anything. Through donors willing to sponsor a year of the Observer for $100, we can redigitize these vital pieces of our county’s history and make them fully searchable for local historians, geneaologists, families and anyone who wants to research the rich history of our wonderful county! Donations are accepted by mail via check, in-person at the library via cash, card, or check, or online via credit, debit, or PayPal using the button below: The archive was created to house all of the FA yearbooks (1940-2021) as well as all of the county’s newspapers from 1838 to 2019. Unfortunately, when the archive was created, it was made with a well-used, very scratched copy of microfilm. When scanned, entire lines went missing. e’s scanned in as c’s or vice versa. You can readContinue Reading A lasting legacy at Thompson Free Library April 29, 2024 - By Kim Brawn, Thompson Free Library You know that moment in May when you look out the window or glance around on your walk and all of a sudden everything is green again? The shift is palpable and welcome. That’s kind of how it’s been since news broke about the late Paula Willoughby’s generous donation to the Thompson Free Library in Dover-Foxcroft that will allow residents of Piscataquis and Penobscot Counties to get free library cards. We’ve been busy signing people up. They’re excited and grateful—so are we. Because we’ve had a few questions and a lot of interest in her story, we wanted to share more about Paula who passed away in Sedona, Arizona in November of 2021. Following her time in the Marine Corps, the UMaine graduate worked for Stouffer’s in the 1980s when frozen meals like Lean Cuisine were first introduced. Later she put her artistic skills to good use as an interior decorator. After moving to San Luis Obispo, California, she met her future husband Louis Harper, a professor at Cal Poly, who would go anywhere Paula wanted as long as he had a book to read. Paula was an avid reader and collector of cookbooksContinue Reading More Details About Paula Willoughby April 24, 2024 - Because we’ve had a few questions and a lot of interest in her story, we wanted to share some more about Paula Willoughby, whose generous donation is making it possible for non-residents to receive library cards free of charge! Following her time in the Marine Corps, she worked for Stouffer’s in the 1980’s when frozen meals were first being introduced. Paula worked at researching and developing products such as Lean Cuisine. Later she changed her career to interior decorator where she could use her artistic skills in home designing. After moving to San Luis Obispo, California, she met her future husband Louis Harper through a Marine friend. Lou was a professor of agronomy at California Polytechnic University who would go anywhere Paula wanted as long as he had a book to read. This brought about another change in career as a caterer at that school. Paula, an avid reader and collector of cookbooks, was an excellent cook in her own right. After Lou’s death she moved to Arizona where she enjoyed time with friends. In addition to pursuing her passions far and wide, Paula kept in touch with her Maine roots. Her sister Sally Nuite, who lives in Sangerville, wasContinue Reading Thompson Free Library Offers Free Cards to Non-Residents Thanks to Generous Donor April 22, 2024 - By Jon Knepp, Director, Thompson Free Library Thompson Free Library in Dover-Foxcroft is proud to announce that all Piscataquis and Penobscot County residents will now be able to receive free library cards thanks to a sizable donation left by Paula Willoughby. She grew up in Mexico, Maine and earned a degree in Home Economics from the University of Maine at Orono in 1961, where she became the first woman graduate to be commissioned a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps. In her professional life, she lived in various parts of the country, working in food research and development, as a caterer, and an interior decorator before retiring to make and sell jewelry, ultimately settling in Arizona. Paula kept her connection to Maine with visits to her family members and by eating blueberry pie and lobster rolls wherever she could find them. She was a generous, fun-loving lady who enjoyed new things; making her an interesting person to know and with whom to share time. That caring for family and her love of books has led to her generous gift to Thompson Free Library. Library cards have always been free for residents of Dover and Foxcroft, who have generously supported theContinue Reading Our April Newsletter Is Out Now! April 16, 2024 - Our April newsletter is out now. Click the link below to see it! April 2024 [pdf] Contents: Eclipsing All Expectations | Highlighting Our Literary And Natural Resources | A Creek Runs Through It | Outward Bound | Wishin’ & Hopin’ & Plantin’ & Growin’ | Not Your Grandparents’ 4H | Starting Spring Early | Locally Sourced | Raising Readers | Work in Progress | Screen Shots | To sign up for our mailing list and receive updates, newsletters, and more, click here: https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/401590/85992968195933587/shareContinue Reading Author Doiron caps off busy April at Thompson Free Library April 2, 2024 - By Kim Brawn, Thompson Free Library April is shaping up to be a series of very fortunate events at the Thompson Free Library in Dover-Foxcroft. From science to poetry, celestial to earthly and everything in between, we have a riveting lineup that will engage all ages — especially because of our very special guest: Known for Maine and Mike With books that fly off the shelf We welcome him soon That’s right, we are very happy to announce that Paul Doiron will be at TFL on Tuesday, April 30 at 6 p.m. He is the author of the enormously successful Maine-based Mike Bowditch series. Locals are enthralled — we put his books on hold for our patrons all the time!) He’ll preview his new book “Pitch Dark” that comes out in June and give away one advanced reader copy. A native of Maine, Paul attended Yale University and Emerson College. He is a former member of the Maine Arts Commission and past chair of the Maine Humanities Council, and Editor Emeritus of Down East Magazine. He is also a Registered Maine Guide specializing in fly fishing and lives on a trout stream in coastal Maine with his wife Kristen Lindquist.Continue Reading Reintroducing ComicsPlus (now with a Children’s Library) March 13, 2024 - We at the library have been happy to provide ComicsPlus, a vast collection of free comics and graphic novels, thanks to the Maine State Library for the last several years! ComicsPlus provides access to a collection of over 20,000 comics and graphic novels, which are all available all the time, and there is no check out limit (No Hold Queues!). ComicsPlus works on the web and through an app available for Apple or Android. Now, we are able to offer a kids-only library of ComicsPlus, providing all the great kids content, while leaving out comics and graphic novels meant for teens and adults. To access our children’s library head to this link with your library card: https://doverfoxcroftthompsonfreelibrarymecc.librarypass.com/ (if you have a four-digit card, add a t in front of it i.e. t1111) For access to the full catalog, head to: https://doverfoxcroftthompsonfreelibraryme.librarypass.com/ As always, if you have any issues or need some help, let us know. We’re as excited to bring this resource to you as we hope you are to start reading your favorite comics and graphic novels!Continue Reading Marching towards spring with Thompson Free Library March 4, 2024 - By Kim Brawn March is when we start to feel—if not see—the hazy shade of winter finally lifting. The time change means more daylight, we celebrate Easter, St. Patrick’s Day, and the first day of spring. We anxiously await what’s around the corner. So “hang on to your hopes, my friend” because the Thompson Free Library in Dover-Foxcroft will help you emerge from hibernation with an inviting array of activities and programs for all ages. Play games and eat snacks at “Family Fun Night” on Tuesday, March 12 at 5:30 p.m. If the kids are bored and staring at their screens and you’ve run out of ideas, this may be the perfect option! TFL’s Reading Group meets on Thursday, March 14 at 6 p.m. to talk about Bel Canto by Ann Patchett. In April, we will discuss Michael Pollan’s book This is Your Mind on Plants. Pollan does a deep dive on three plant drugs—opium, caffeine, and mescaline and the powerful human attraction to psychoactive plants. He explores why we go to such great lengths to seek these shifts in consciousness, and then why do we fence that universal desire with laws and customs and fraught feelings? It’s a uniqueContinue Reading Sparks Fly at Thompson Free Library January 29, 2024 - By Kim Brawn “There is no greater education than one that is self-driven.” These words from astrophysicist and author Neil deGrasse Tyson paint only part of the picture. Being self-driven requires a spark and a safe space. The Thompson Free Library in Dover-Foxcroft can be that space—one that fosters curiosity in kids and rekindles it in adults. Whether you’re one of our regulars or have never set foot inside the library, we hope you’ll stop by Saturday, February 3 from 10 a.m.-12 p.m. for “Take Your Child to the Library Day.” Youth services librarian Michelle Fagan will read a library story, serve up snacks, and have a self-led craft for families to do. TFL’s Reading Group is taking a cosmic perspective on Thursday, February 8 at 6 p.m. with Neil deGrasse Tyson’s bestseller, Astrophysics for People in a Hurry. Neil knows everyone is busy and many of us have the attention span of gnat, so this seems like the perfect way to learn about the nature of time and space, how we fit in the universe, and how the universe fits within us. Amazon Reviewer Terry L. Price’s description caught my eye: “Tyson’s “Astrophysics” is a journey through the starsContinue Reading Read Our January Newsletter Now! January 16, 2024 - Our latest newsletter is out now! Click the link below to see it! January 2024 [pdf] Contents: Happy Holidaze! | Still Caring After All These Years | It’s Not Goodbye, It’s See You Later | A Warm Welcome | Calling All Remote Workers | Every Breath You Take | Birds of a Feather | Who’s the Boss? | A Hero’s Welcome | Trick or Treat . . . Give Me Something Good to Read! | Screen Shots |Continue Reading