When Donna Lambert was notified the Pittsfield Public Library at 110 Library St. will get $10,000 from the Carnegie Corp. of New York to spend as library officials wish, she thought it was a scam.

“It was a complete surprise,” Lambert, the library director, said Monday. “It’s nice to know the Carnegie Corp. still cares about us after all these years. That’s important.”

Lambert and the Pittsfield library are not alone.

In all, 17 Maine libraries will each receive $10,000 to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the Carnegie Corp. announced recently.

Andrew Carnegie, who became the wealthiest man in the world in the late 19th century on the strength of his steel business, funded the construction of 1,681 free public libraries between 1886 and 1917.

The Maine libraries are among more than 1,000 in the U.S. still operating as Carnegie libraries.

They can expect to receive the checks in January and may spend the money as they desire, further their mission and benefit their community, according to a Carnegie news release.

“Our founder, Andrew Carnegie, who championed the free public library movement of the late 19th century, described libraries as ‘cradles of democracy’ that ‘strengthen the democratic idea, the equality of the citizen, and the royalty of man,’” Carnegie President Dame Louise Richardson, former head of University of Oxford, said in the release. “We still believe this and are delighted to celebrate our connection to the libraries he founded.”

Lambert said she isn’t sure yet what the Pittsfield library will do with the money, but at older libraries, there’s always a need for repairs and maintenance.

“I’d like to see it go back into the building,” she said.

Waterville Public Library Director Tammy Rabideau said she learned last week about the Carnegie funds, which came as a total surprise.

“We are incredibly grateful for the $10,000 gift, but we are not sure yet how we will use it,” she said. “My goal is for us to find ways to use the funds to exemplify the beacon of light that public libraries are in communities.”

The mission of the award-winning library, which opened in 1896, is to empower people and strengthen the community by sharing stories, knowledge and experiences.

In Lewiston, a Carnegie-funded library was built in 1903 on Park Street. The old, stone building forms the back half of the public library, which was extended down to Lisbon Street in 1996, according to library Director Joseph Houston.

Houston said the funds will help the library maintain and grow its status as a place that serves the community in a number of important ways.

“With this gift, the Carnegie Corp. re-commits to its longstanding legacy of supporting public spaces dedicated to education and culture,” he said. “Libraries have long held Carnegie in a place of reverence due to the sheer volume of support during the original wave of Carnegie gifts, which allowed much of the American library services infrastructure to take root in communities that might not otherwise have been able to afford such services.

“The Lewiston Public Library is extraordinarily grateful for this gift, which is an affirmation of the importance of libraries’ roles in their communities,” he said. “LPL will use these funds to bolster library programming, including outreach to English Language Learners, older adults, and new parents.”

Julie Forbus, a 26-year employee of Madison Public Library at 12 Old Point Ave., who has been head librarian 14 years, said notification of the gift came as exciting news.

“It was a real boost to think that the reason was like ‘Hey, you’re still here and we’re going to reward you for that,’ ” Forbus said.

Like Rabideau and Lambert, Forbus emphasized the importance of libraries to communities and area residents.

“The most important thing I feel for the library,” she said, “is that it’s the last place you can go for free, and it doesn’t matter who you are or how much money you have, everybody is treated the same at the library.”

Rumford Public Library Director Abby Austin said the library is thrilled about the gift.

More than 120 years after opening with Carnegie funding, the library is again the recipient of his foundation’s generosity, she said, calling it “unexpected, exciting news.”

In 1903, it was another gift of $10,000 that funded the construction of the Rumford Public Library at 56 Rumford Ave., according to Austin.

“More than a century later, we are still serving our community,” she said. “We are deeply grateful to the Carnegie Corporation for its recognition of what fundamental resources libraries are to communities. We look forward to sharing how this gift will support Rumford Public Library.”

She said she is still brainstorming uses for the gift and has some ideas to present to the library’s board of trustees, including creating a safer space in the bathroom area for patrons, and improvements to the entrance to the children’s library downstairs.

The Oakland Public Library at 18 Church St. also is scheduled to receive $10,000 in January. Library Director Sheila Thorne Rogers said Wednesday that notification of the Carnegie gift came as a complete surprise.

“This is wonderful and we’re so excited,” she said.

The library advisory board will meet to discuss uses for the money but the building, constructed in 1913, always needs something, she said. The wood floors were recently refinished to the tune of $5,100 and the central air system is broken, so the atrium room, which hosts a variety of events, is hot in the summer. Officials have been thinking about having a heat pump installed in that room, and the gift could be used for that.

“We have so much pride in (the building) Rogers said. “It’s just beautiful but it’s a lot of work and we just want to keep it up.”

The gifts are being disbursed as part of a special $20 million initiative, Carnegie Libraries 250, aimed at supporting America’s civic institutions and organizations that foster civic participation and bring people together.

Carnegie’s philanthropic foundation contacted about 1,280 libraries that still operate and acknowledge their link to Carnegie, making them eligible for the celebratory gift, according to the foundation. About 750 of those libraries continue to use their original buildings, while others have moved to new locations.

Donna Wallace, director of the Auburn Public Library at 49 Spring St., said the library is honored to have been selected.

“This $10,000 gift from the Carnegie Corp. will help us continue our mission to provide free access to information, lifelong learning, and community connection,” Wallace said. “We are proud to uphold Carnegie’s belief that libraries are essential to democracy and opportunity for all.”

The grants include exchange programs between people in urban and rural areas, cultural events that reach new audiences, and activities that engage the next generation of Americans. Grantees include Carnegie Hall, the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, the Jack Miller Center for Teaching America’s Founding Principles and History, the Museum of the City of New York, The New York Historical, Yo-Yo Ma’s Silkroad, and the Smithsonian Institution.

“The special initiative aligns with the foundation’s overarching goal of reducing political polarization,” the release said. “Over the past year, Carnegie has invested $30 million in grants for civics education, state-based community service, youth voting, and media and digital literacy. Related grants include $13 million to libraries for programs such as English language learning for adults and civic participation for teens. Carnegie also makes annual grants of $6 million to fund the Andrew Carnegie Fellows Program and scholarly research about the causes of polarization and potential solutions to reduce it.”

The other Carnegie libraries in Maine that remain active are Caribou Public Library, Fort Fairfield Public Library, Freeport Community Library, Guilford Memorial Library, Cary Library in Houlton, Lewiston Public Library, Milo Free Public Library, Old Town Public Library, Mark & Emily Turner Memorial Public Library in Presque Isle, Rockland Public Librar, and Vinalhaven Public Library.