Unused Nelson Library may find new life with Grafton Recreation

Select Board member Ray Mead is proposing that the Nelson Library be turned over to the Grafton Recreation Department.

“It would be a great spot for recreation,” he told the Select Board Tuesday. “You have the park, you have the building, which right now is not being utilized.”

The Nelson Library, while owned by the town, has a separate board of trustees (elected by Town Meeting) and an interesting history,

In 1935, the 18 acres that are now Nelson Park were bequeathed  to the town of Grafton in the will of Charles H. Nelson, who requested that a library be built on the property. For several years, it resided in his former mansion, with the current structure replacing it after a fire.

Both the Nelson Library and the South Grafton Library were shut down in late 2008 due to budget issues, but Nelson supporters collected books and kept the library open, staffed by volunteers, for a number of years.

Nelson Park also holds several softball fields, a playground, and is utilized for multiple reception programs.

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