Welcome to the landing page for the Wayland Free Public Library’s 175th anniversary history project. The various essays linked below represent nearly two years of research, writing, and editing conducted by three Brandeis University History PhD students: Rafael Abrahams, Elizabeth Simms, and Joseph Weisberg. This work would not have been possible without the contributions of many stakeholders in this project from the WFPL, Brandeis, and beyond. We have enumerated these generous collaborators in the “About the Project” link below.
We hope that you enjoy reading these pieces and that you learn something new about the WFPL, the Town of Wayland, and how these institutions intersect with broader themes in American history. We hope that our research will answer many questions and generate even more. We encourage curious readers to follow up on this work by producing their own research about WFPL and other local institutions.
– Rafael Abrahams, Elizabeth Simms, and Joseph Weisberg
March 2023
About the Project
About the Project
Preface by Dr. Amy Singer and Marjanneke Wright
From the Board of Library Trustees
Introduction by Jane Sciacca
WFPL General History
Case Studies