Haskell Free Library & Opera House

If you journey up north, while still (mostly) staying in Vermont, you’ll discover the world’s only opera house with an address in two countries adjoined by a library where every book is available in both English and French.

Wishing to honor her late husband, Martha Haskell and her son created a cultural center in his name at the dawn of the twentieth century. To pledge allegiance to two flags, the Haskell Free Library & Opera House was constructed on the international border between the United States and Canada.

A single line of thick black tape runs along the floor, not merely to uphold the playful notion that Vermont has been “keeping Canada at bay since 1791” but also because the respective sides have separate governing bodies and even separate insurance policies. The division, however absurd, has enabled the Haskell to collect a few distinctions. The bookshelves sit on the Canadian side, as does the stage, so Haskell’s is the only US library with no books on offer, and the only US opera house  without a stage. The main entrance is in Vermont, but patrons from Quebec receive special dispensation to cross the border and enter the building without going through customs…provided they exit through the same door.

For more than one hundred years, the Haskell has been a symbol of the strong relationship between the border towns. And even if you don’t collect a new passport stamp there, you’re guaranteed a refreshing glimpse of how—though arbitrary lines divide us—literature and music bind us together. Plus, any artist who plays one song there can claim to be on an international tour.

📖 Full Story Page 52