Haskell Free Library & Opera House
US-Canada Border
Stanstead, Quebec & Derby Line, Vermont
The address of this Library is enough to leave you intrigued, as it stands on the US-Canada border, and not by mistake. Founded in 1901, the Haskell Free Library & Opera House supports the cultural needs of the community on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border, in both English and French, through access to information, reading material, a broad range of library services, and programming, as well as the visual and performing arts.
As you enter the Library through the front door, you stand in the United States. For stacks of books you’ll have to search in Canada. The reading room has a borderline separating the United States and Canada that allows you to be in both the countries at the same time.
As might be expected, bypassing border control has been tempting for some. In 2017 a man from Montreal faced multiple federal charges for exporting firearms from the United States into Canada without a permit through the Haskell Free Library. After walking from Quebec, the man entered the Library, retrieved a backpack containing handguns that had been left in the bathroom by an accomplice, and exited the Library without going through the port-of-entry.
The Library will be open on Sunday, December 31, from 1:00 - 2:30 p.m. We will be closed on Monday, January 1.
Happy New Year!
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