1797 Gilbert Stuart (American painter, 1755-1828) Ann Willing Bingham with a book
Because colonial Americans valued reading, their willingness to share access to literacy would trickle over to sharing access to books. Some booksellers sold a diverse amount of books to satisfy Americans pleasure for reading diverse text. Some communities began to establish libraries on the collegiate level at Harvard & Yale Universities. Naturally, there existed communities where book access was more limited compared to other areas, & colonists often shared their books.