Stand in this round room on any given spring day, and you’ll see about half the residents of this small town pass through. The first library here was founded in 1796 — when the whole of the hamlet only had fifteen houses. That first two hundred-volume collection lasted just a few decades, but as the population increased, the demand for literature grew. A Ladies Library Association was formed in 1854 and met at a house on Wood Street before taking over the upstairs of a downtown brick building. And in 1896 the town decided it was time to get serious about building a proper home for its books. The wife of a local Pulitzer-Prize-winning author donated land for the project. It was a fine spot with a pretty prospect of the harbor and its island in one direction and the mountains in another, and a pair of architects worked up plans. But it wasn’t until the spring of 1928 that the doors opened on the Colonial Revival. Construction began on this room — and the rest of the Centennial Wing — in 1996. Hundreds of area residents and businesses donated monies toward a new expansion that saw the library go underground, digging up the south lawn. The circulation desk and computers and children’s room and much of the collection was moved into these new quarters. Hence the bustle. Have you ever been to this library? Send us a note at P.O. Box 679, Camden, ME 04843; whip off an email to editorial@downeast.com; or post a comment at www.DownEast.com if you can identify this attractive athenaeum.