MiembroDyerMemLibrary

The Dyer Memorial Library's non-cirulating collections focus on genealogy and local history, with resources covering not only Old Abington (now Abington, Rockland, and Whitman), but also Massachusetts south shore towns and beyond.

Although the library’s resources are available to the public at no cost, the Dyer is entirely privately funded and receives no government support. At present, the Dyer Memorial Library operates out of funds derived from investment income of two trusts. The Dyer Memorial Library is a tax exempt 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization and gifts are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law.

Marietta White Dyer (1853–1918) came to live at the house her uncle built at a young age and lived there her entire life with her parents and siblings. As Marietta grew up, she took on the role of hostess of the house; she was its last occupant. Marietta Dyer inherited her fortune from her uncle, Samuel Brown Dyer (1809–1894), who was nicknamed "Paris Sam" for the years he spent as an international banker in France.

By her will she created a trust, “…to perpetuate by a permanent memorial, the name and memory of the Dyer family, a family which has been identified with the development and growth of the Town of Abington from its beginning.”