Ilsley Public Library

05/27/2026

Thank you to everyone who walked with the Ilsley during Monday's Memorial Day Parade, and to everyone who cheered us on when we passed by!

Those who got some of our parade swag saw that our library grand re-opening will be on Saturday, August 29! We are so excited and can't wait to welcome everyone in to the new space.

📸: Joe McVeigh

05/26/2026

🎥Join the Ilsley and the Pollinator Pathway of Addison County on Thursday, May 28 for a free screening of the documentary "The Little Things that Run the World" at 7:00pm!

🦋With enchanting visuals and vignettes, the film explores how bees, butterflies, beetles and their kin, our distant cousins on our evolutionary tree, sustain ecosystems and ultimately our own survival. It leaves viewers with a sense of wonder and an optimistic call to action.

No tickets required. Arrive early to assure seating; we will be in the NBM Meeting Room, which can be accessed through the back of the building.

05/19/2026

⏰REMINDER: Sign-Making Party!

We will host a parade sign making party on Saturday, May 23, from 2:00-3:30pm in the downstairs meeting room at Mini-Ilsley (30 Main St.)

All ages are welcome to join us to make a sign to hold in the parade, and all materials will be provided! If you can't join us in the parade but want to make a sign for someone else to hold, you can do that, too. We hope to see you!

05/12/2026

Join us at Mini-Ilsley on May 27th from 6-8pm* for a fun evening of collage! Create something to hang in your home or give to friends and family. All materials will be provided (unless you have a favorite pair of scissors - then definitely bring those!)

This event is free and open to the public. We hope to see you for a few hours of open-ended creativity!

*This event will be held in the downstairs meeting room - enter through the back of the building.

05/09/2026

We hope you'll join our friends at the Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History to kick off VT Reads 2026 on May 20 from 4-6pm! The Ilsley will have some exciting programming surrounding this year's pick - CHARITY & SYLVIA by Tillie Walden - this fall, so this will be a great introduction.

Thank you to Vermont Humanities for selecting a book celebrating our favorite Addison County power couple!

Drawing on the Archive invites visitors into a layered conversation between past and present, pairing the Museum’s archival and object collections with Tillie Walden’s contemporary illustrations. Together, these materials illuminate the lives of one of America’s earliest documented same-sex co...

05/05/2026

🫶🫶March with the Ilsley in Middlebury's Memorial Day Parade!

The Ilsley is thrilled to be walking in this year's Memorial Day Parade, and we'd love for you to join us. There are two ways for you to be involved!

We will host a parade sign making party on Saturday, May 23, from 2:00-3:30pm in the downstairs meeting room at Mini-Ilsley (30 Main St.) All ages are welcome to join us to make a sign to hold in the parade, and all materials will be provided! If you can't join us in the parade but want to make a sign for someone else to hold, you can do that, too.

If you'd like to walk with the Ilsley group in the parade on Monday, May 25, meet us at the Middlebury College parking lot accessed via South Street and Porter Field Road. We will gather at 8:40am, and the parade starts at 9:00am. Marchers will receive a t-shirt when they show up at the staging area (while supplies last.) Candy goodie bags will be handed out to marchers at the end of the route as a thank-you!

04/29/2026

Celebrate Arbor Day with us at the Ilsley! The Middlebury Tree Committee (MTC) will be joining us for a reading of Dr. Seuss' THE LORAX this Saturday at 10:30am - and will be giving out free saplings!

04/25/2026

🎉🎉Happy National Library Week, our favorite annual celebration of libraries!

One great way to support your local library during this week (or any week!) is to attend programs, and there is one TODAY from 2-4pm to celebrate National Poetry Month.

We'll start with readings by the Otter Creek Poets, and then the floor will be opened to YOU! Bring your own poetry or short prose to share with the group, or share a poem by your favorite poet. This event is geared towards adults, but older teens are more than welcome to read and/or listen.

We'll be in the basement meeting room of our temporary location on 30 Main Street (enter through the back.) Please share with your poet & poetry-loving friends!