U.S. authorities closing Canadian access to historic library that straddles Quebec-Vermont border

Residents on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border are frustrated over new rules limiting access to the historic Haskell Free Library.

A small town in southern Quebec says American authorities have decided to close the Canadian access to an historic library that sits on the border between the two countries.

Inside the Haskell Free Library and Opera House there is a worn strip of black tape on the floor marking the U.S. and Canadian border. The building’s main entrance is on the American side, in Derby Line, VT, but for decades Canadians have been able to access the library without a passport or visa by entering the Canadian side of the building, in Stanstead, Que. and following the sidewalk to the entrance.

But that is reportedly changing.

The Town of Stanstead said in a news release late Thursday evening that U.S. officials have made a “unilateral decision” to close access on the Canadian side. It’s not clear why the change was made.

The library recently made international headlines after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visited it in January, stepping over the tape on the Canadian side of the building and referring to Canada as the “51st state” multiple times, the library’s executive director, Deborah Bishop, told CTV News in an interview earlier this month.

Those remarks shocked library staff, who accused Noem of showing a lack of respect to the United States' closest ally.

“This closure not only compromises Canadian visitors' access to a historic symbol of cooperation and harmony between the two countries but also weakens the spirit of cross-border collaboration that defines the iconic location,” the Town of Stanstead said in Thursday’s release.

Library says it needs $100K to modify entrance for Canadians

Sylvie Boudreau, the president of the library’s board of trustees, told CTV News that the change was announced after a meeting on Tuesday with officials from the United States Border Patrol (USBP) agency and is set to go into effect Monday.

A USBP spokesperson said in a statement to CTV News Friday afternoon that the border town has seen “a continued rise in illicit cross border activity” and that it is enacting a phased approach to ensure “100% border security.”

Under the new plan, which takes effect Monday until Oct. 1, non-library members attempting to enter the U.S. via the sidewalk on the Canadian side will be redirected to the nearest port of entry, a three-minute walk from the library. Library members will continue to be allowed to use the sidewalk with proof of membership.

As of Oct. 1, “all visitors from Canada wishing to use the front entrance will be required to present themselves at a port of entry to enter the library from the United States. There will be continued exceptions provided to those accessing the sidewalk on or after October 1, 2025 as not to impact safety, security, and education. Those populations include law enforcement, medical, fire, mail/package delivery, official workers, school visits (with notice to CBP), and handicapped individuals,” according to USBP.

At a press conference Friday afternoon, Boudreau said the library will have to spend at least $100,000 to renovate the emergency exit at the rear of the building to create a new entrance on the Canadian side and make it accessible.

The library has already launched a GoFundMe page to help raise money to cover the costs.

In the meantime, the library says Canadians without a library can still enter the building through a temporary entrance that is under renovation.

Outgoing Liberal MP Marie-Claude Bibeau denounced the changes at the press conference, saying “they make no sense.”

Alongside her was Stanstead Mayor Jody Stone, who said the residents of his town and Derby Line “are friends forever” who have “too many reasons to cherish our relationship and it’s not one man that will change that,” in an apparent reference to President Donald Trump.

He said he never imagined his small town would be a flashpoint in the diplomatic dispute between Canada and the U.S.

The library was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1985 and was donated for the use of citizens in both countries in memory of American sawmill owner Carlos Haskell and his Canadian wife Martha Stewart Haskell by their family, according to Parks Canada.

The library, which is privately funded but receives U.S. government grants, has welcomed Canadian and American visitors for more than a century since it was built in 1904.

The changes come amid deteriorating diplomatic ties between the two countries since the 2024 presidential election and Trump’s repeated threats of annexation of Canada, and his description of the Canada-U.S. border as an “artificial line.”

Vermont Senator Peter Welch called the decision to close access on the Canadian side “troubling.”

“Vermont loves Canada. This shared cultural institution celebrates a partnership between our two nations,” he wrote in a post on X.