Burnham Library offers free or reduced-price admission to a number of cultural organizations through its Museum Pass program. The program includes museums, science centers, and zoos in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York City.

Mission Statement

The Purpose of the Friends of the Burnham Library is to stimulate public use of the library, provide financial assistance to the library, and sponsor programs for all members of the community.

The Friends group provides funding for capital improvements, books, and technological upgrades.

This is a story with an unusual cast of characters: some civic-minded townspeople, a wealthy ship captain, a respected man of letters, a hermit, and a bulldozer operator. And the State of California.

The first name in the story is that of Captain Nathaniel Randall, who between l8l0 and l840 maintained a circulating library in his house, using his own large collection of books. A smaller collection was kept and lent out by Augusta Lyon, who established a district library in the building that housed the original Bridgewater post office.