About
Sabra Maretta Thrall
Our Library's Benefactress
{download the PDF }Sadly, not much is known about Sabra.
What we little we do know is that she was a charitable and community-minded person born in 1830.
Sabra also recognized the value of a public library and acted to ensure Middletown citizens would have a most excellent one of their own.
And so she bequeathed an impressive sum of $30,000 (approximately valued at $1,140,000 in 2025) to establish a library right in the heart of Middletown, New York.
This original Thrall Library Building was constructed on Orchard Street and opened in 1901. Reinvesting her wealth in her community, Sabra established not only our library but also Thrall Hospital and Thrall Park.
Her contributions would significantly improve the cultural, educational, and general wellness of our community for many years to come.
Though Sabra passed away in 1897, her generosity and love of community live on in our library on 11 Depot Street, which opened in 1995 in the renovated and expanded Erie Railroad Station. Our library’s chartered service district grew to include the Town of Wallkill, New York in 2002.
We remain grateful for Sabra’s historic and lasting gift as we continue to celebrate and build upon that foundational legacy over 125 years later.
For more about Mrs. Thrall and her legacy . . .
- At Thrall.org:
- "Mrs. Thrall's Handsome Legacy" (from Middletown Thrall Library, 1901 - 1996: A Historical Study of a Small City Public Library)
- Obituary (July 7, 1897)
- Thrall Hospital:
- Thrall Library:
- Thrall Park:
- In the library:
- Newspaper Archive - Misc. Articles (available at Thrall)
- Elsewhere:
- Bequest Notices (newspapers via NYS Historic Newspapers)
- Historical Marker (photograph)
- Orange Regional Medical Center (ORMC) - History
- Thrall Centennial Celebration - Congressional Record, remarks by Benjamin A. Gillman (Dec. 14, 2000)
- Thrall Park (postcard)