Purcellville Library Celebrates Its 85th Birthday Saturday, October 7

PURCELLVILLE, VA — Purcellville Library will celebrate its 85th birthday Saturday, Oct. 7, from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., with crafts, live music by Ben Demase, a book sale hosted by the Purcellville Library Advisory Board, balloon art with Dee Vinchey Entertainment, and cake by Sweet Rose Bakery.

Purcellville Library was established in 1937 during the Great Depression with significant contributions collected by Mrs. Gertrude Robey in addition to federal funding. It became the county’s first desegregated library in 1957 after Samuel Murray — an upholsterer seeking to check out a book as he designed window shades — was refused admittance because he was Black.

When the building was expanded in 1993, the architect was careful to keep as much of the original stonework and landscaping as possible, repurposing materials from the old garden to use on the trim of the new portion.

Ceramic tiles by artist Joan Gardiner now decorate the walls of the lobby and storytime room, illustrating relics such as the 1940s bookmobile with its first operator, Jean Carruthers. According to local lore, you may still encounter Mrs. Robey’s ghost in the original part of the building.

On the same day as the celebration, the town of Purcellville will also be hosting its annual autumn tag sale.

For complete details, see the event post at library.loudoun.gov/calendar.

Posted on: October 2, 2023