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Community History Archives

Community History Archive Partner

Fletcher Memorial Library

Ludlow, Vermont

Explore this community history collection to discover the people, places, organizations, and events of Ludlow.

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1Title

Explore publications and collections from the past.

1930 to 2020Dates represented

See individual titles for available dates.

18,620Archive pages

Historical pages reported for this collection.

Explore local history

Discover the people, places, and stories of Ludlow, Vermont.

Explore the past of Ludlow, Vermont through yearbooks and annuals in the Fletcher Memorial Library's digital archive. The archive includes The Banner, with material from 1930 to 2020.

You can open the archive using the link below.
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  • Selected title

    The collection shared by Fletcher Memorial Library features “The Banner”.

  • Free and open access

    No subscription or payment required.

  • Ways to explore

    Consider when and why the material was created. Keep those details with any quotation or observation you use.

Yearbooks and annuals can offer glimpses of the people, activities and institutions of an earlier time, placing familiar names within the communities around them. A name, class, or activity can lead you through a yearbook's pages. Read captions and nearby references where present, without assuming they tell one person's whole story. Explore the archive online for free, without a subscription.

Explore the collection

Titles in this collection

Explore The Banner through 18,620 digitized pages, with material from 1930 to 2020. This collection is shared through Fletcher Memorial Library's partnership with Advantage Archives. Some years or items may be missing between the dates shown.

You may be tracing a family story, exploring a familiar place or simply curious. The source offers a point to begin.

The Banner

18,620 pages from 1930 to 2020

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About the Library

About The Fletcher Memorial Library

The Fletcher Memorial Library (FML) was gifted to the town of Ludlow by Governor Allen M. Fletcher as a free library for the residents of Ludlow and Cavendish. Over the years, the library has expanded its services to include the communities of Mount Holly and Plymouth. In 1894, Allen M. Fletcher purchased the property that would become the site of the Fletcher Memorial Library. Announced as a memorial to his father, Stoughton Fletcher, the library's construction began in 1899 with architectural plans by S. F. Page of Boston and construction by J. H. Rogers of Middlebury. Despite facing delays, the library eventually opened on November 1, 1901. The building, an architectural gem in the style of the later English Renaissance, features a red brick exterior with Bedford limestone and Medford granite accents, and an interior adorned with Italian marble and Caen stone carvings. A Children's Wing was added in 1964, funded through the generosity of Fanny Fletcher and community fundraising efforts. Major renovations in 2004 added a rear entrance, an interior lift, and a new bathroom to meet ADA standards. These updates also included the creation of a Community Room, Historical Room, and Kitchen, providing valuable community meeting spaces.

Fletcher Memorial Library photo 1

Local History

Did You Know?

The Fletcher Memorial Library's main entrance is a free adaptation of the Winchester School in Winchester, England, and features Italian Cosmatesque inlaid marble. The interior includes Vermont marble, Michigan Oak paneling, and Caen stone carvings imported from France, adding to the library's unique architectural significance. Black River High School served the Ludlow community from 1939 until its closure in 2020. Known for its strong sports programs, the school also excelled in choral competitions, art shows, and the National History Project. The school's closure marked a significant loss for the community, with many alumni and residents fondly remembering the events and traditions that were a vital part of Ludlow life. Chartered in 1835, the Black River Academy educated students from 26 states and three foreign countries during its 103 years of operation. Notable alumni include Calvin Coolidge, the 30th president of the United States, John G. Sargent, U.S. Attorney General under Coolidge, and Paul Harris, founder of Rotary International. After a fire destroyed the original building, classes were temporarily held in the old Union Church until the new academy building was completed in 1889.

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More ways to explore and share local history

Research Guidance

Track a school or organization reference

A portrait, caption, or club page in the yearbooks and annuals shared by the Fletcher Memorial Library can offer a starting point for research about Ludlow. Read the surrounding page and note the volume year, then check another source for details the annual does not provide. When the volume names a school group or organization, note the page and date. Check another source before extending that reference to a different year.

Compare a promising result with the title information and date context available for it. If the details do not fit your question, keep it as a possible lead and look for another account or source where available rather than forcing a connection.

Capture the title, date, and page or item location for a detail you may want to revisit. Label your interpretation as your reading, not the source's own words. Keep enough context with the note that another reader can retrace it.

Review collection titles

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Community Partnership

Keeping local history a community resource

This community archive is made possible by the collaboration of the Fletcher Memorial Library, its community, and Advantage Archives. Together, these partnerships preserve local sources and give people a way to explore, learn from, and share the history around them.

Advantage Archives covers ongoing archive hosting, storage, development, and maintenance. The institution and its community do not pay a subscription, seat license, annual support contract, or other recurring archive-service charge. Local history remains a community resource, not a subscription to maintain.

Would you like to see more of your community's history preserved and accessible? Start a conversation with your library, newspaper publisher, historical or genealogical society, museum, or school about the materials they would like to share and a possible partnership with Advantage Archives.

Learn about partnerships
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Read All About It

Stories, research tips, and archive news

Read All About It connects archive research with the people and institutions preserving local history. Explore partner and community stories, project updates, research ideas, and perspectives on digitization, education, and working with primary sources. Use the articles as a starting point for your next question or a new way to share a discovery.

Newest published articles

March 18, 2025

It’s Your Community’s History, So Why Rent Something You Own?

We believe that history belongs to the communities where it was made - not locked behind paywalls or inaccessible due to budget restrictions. Subscription-based services and large content aggregators are generally more concerned with "content" and less concerned with the history that content contains. Their models typically involve a reoccurring charge for a plan that renews annually or licensing agreements with the library based on population served or circulation numbers. You are essentially Renting Access To YOUR History.
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