About

Charles E. Thomas was an artist and longtime summer resident of Prouts Neck. He loved books and gave his cottage to the community at the time of his death, "devising that it should be used in perpetuity as a library."

The Library has honored his wishes for more than a century. The building has expanded and includes a Children's Room, a Reading Room, and a Main Library Room. Each summer the Library acquires new fiction, non-fiction and children’s books to add to its collection. Over the past few years, the Library has partnered with the Prouts Neck Historical Society to house a collection of digital and written archives which is accessible to everyone. More historical documents are on loan to and available at the Scarborough Historical Society.

In 2020, the Library undertook a long overdue landscaping project. The new design provides for outdoor seating and a patio for readings and events.

The Library is a very special place, an oasis of quiet, and a source of all that is timeless and topical.

We are looking forward to welcoming all of you to a full roster of activities at the Library this 2024 summer. We are pleased to report that our wonderful and well-read librarian, Lisa Joyce, will be returning for her fourth summer. Also returning is our wonderful intern, Molly Gooch.