The Stoddard Social Library was formed in 1799 by several residents of the town. This private library was incorporated by an act of the New Hampshire Legislature on June 13, 1800. Library privileges were limited to those people who purchased a membership in the organization. The original collection of 175 books was enlarged by assessments on the members. The library ceased to exist in 1838 after books and periodicals became cheaper and more readily available.

It wasn’t until 1892 that the town voted $100 for the purchase of books to start a free public library. The new library was located in the selectmen’s room at the town hall. A catalog of the library holdings was printed in 1894, when the collection contained 346 volumes.

In 1918 the library was moved to the Stoddard Historical Society building. Louise E. Davis served the town as librarian for 20 years, from 1926 until her death in 1946. In her will she bequeathed the town $5,000 for a library to be known as the Davis Public Library. The town voted to accept the bequest in 1947 and added $2,000 to that amount in 1949 for the construction of the new library.

Land was acquired in Stoddard Center village and the new library was completed and opened to the public that year. The Davis Library building has served as the town’s public library since that time.

The collection contained approximately 2,500 volumes by the early 1970s. That number increased to more than 4,000 books, videos and audio books by the 1990s. Although the Davis Library was an attractively designed building, it became clear in recent years that the library was too small for the growing population and was not adequately equipped to handle computers and other modern technology. Furthermore, the Davis Library had never been equipped with running water or restrooms.

Following considerable study and planning, the town approved an expense of some $200,000 at the 2015 annual town meeting to make the first substantial improvements to the building since its construction more than 60 years earlier. The library was enlarged and updated during the year and the completion of the facility was celebrated with a public open house in December 2015. in addition to that $200,000, $42,500 was given to the library specifically for the expansion through the Friends of the Library. That $42,500 came from cash donations from community members and some local grants. There were also many donations of labor, equipment, furniture, and many volunteer service hours.

The greatly enhanced and improved Davis Public Library is now well suited to be an educational and social center for the town of Stoddard for many years to come.