The message below is a synopsis and status update written by Maureen Amyot, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC):
On December 3, 2025, the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) announced it had reinstated all federal grants which were terminated due to Executive Order 14238 signed by President Trump on March 14, 2025. The goal of the executive order was to eliminate IMLS "to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law."
The IMLS announcement followed the November 21st ruling by U.S. District Court Chief Judge John J. McConnell in favor of 21 state attorneys general, including Massachusetts. Judge McConnell determined that Executive Order 14238 exceeded presidential authority and violated laws governing agencies established by Congress. This ruling permanently blocks Executive Order 14238 and ensures that IMLS can continue delivering critical support and funding for libraries nationwide and prohibits any further attempts to dismantle the agency.
With these two major developments, the MBLC has started to rebuild its federal program.
Snow Library’s “Warming Winter with Music” series, sponsored by the Helen Telfair Trust, returns in the new year with a lineup of weekly concerts featuring stellar performers from the Cape and beyond. All are invited to these free performances, which begin at 2 p.m. in the library’s Craine Gallery every Saturday in January and February.
Hours of Operation:
Mon, Thurs, Fri: 10 am to 5 pm
Tues, Wed: 10 am to 8 pm
Sat: 10 am to 4 pm
Click below to find information on efforts to build a new Snow Library
Browse the library’s collection of glass-plate photography by Henry Knowles Cummings, an Orleans merchant and portraitist who captured scenes of everyday life on the lower Cape in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Snow Library
67 Main Street
Orleans, MA 02653
Phone: (508) 240-3760
Fax (508) 255-5701
Hours of Operation:
Mon, Thurs, Fri: 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Tues - Wed: 10:00 am to 8:00 pm
Sat: 10:00 am to 4:00 pm
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Webdesign: Pluhar Creative Design Services
Note: The ship illustration in the logo at the top of the page is a detail from The 1858 Map of Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard & Nantucket by Henry F. Walling.