Our library was founded in 1948 through the efforts of Emily Fingar Lappe and members of the Germantown Garden Club. The library was located in the Town Hall on Main Street, across from the present Post Office. Volunteers ran the library until 1950 when Bessie Muller-Babcock was hired as the first librarian at a salary of $100 per year.

In 1980 the library moved into the new Town Hall, now located in Palatine Park. Within ten years, however, it became apparent that this space was inadequate to meet the demands of a growing collection of material and increasing public use.

The library board of trustees formed a building committee representative of the community to formulate a solution to our space problems. Working with advice from the Mid-Hudson Library System, the committee developed a comprehensive space plan and then examined potential locations for a new facility At the end of two years of work, the committee proposed that the library purchase and develop a 3 1/2 acre site on Palatine Park Road.

Seed money for the project was made possible by a generous bequest from Mrs. Barbara Calderwood. Dedicated to the memory of William and Barbara Calderwood, the bequest established the Barbara Calderwood Trust and provided the library trustees with the financial resources to purchase land for a new 3,000 square foot home for the Germantown Library.