Library staff members who have been appointed as notaries public by the Secretary of the Commonwealth can perform brief notarial services. Please understand that only a small portion of the library staff are notaries public and the library is often open without a notary being present. To confirm that a notary public will be available when you visit the library, please email notary@forbeslibrary.org or call 413-587-1012. The library provides notary service free of charge, but donations are appreciated.
Our notaries are not attorneys and have no authority to give advice on immigration or other legal matters.
Notaries Public operate on behalf of the state and the law may sometimes require that they refuse to perform a requested notarial act.
Forbes Library notaries may not:
- notarize deeds, mortgages, or any other document that is part of a real estate transaction
- provide copy certification for government issued IDs, immigration forms and certificates, or vital records
- act as a representative for any third party
Before your appointment
- Please bring a government issued photo id to all notary appointments
- The library cannot ensure the availability of witnesses beyond the staff notary public; if your document requires witnesses, please bring them with you
- Please be sure that either:
- the documents to be notarized include notary certificates. (The notary certificate is the language written from the notary’s perspective. It often begins something like “On this _____ day of _____, before me, the undersigned notary public, personally appeared….”)
- for any document to be notarized that is missing a certificate you know what type of notarization is required and whether a loose notary certificate (i.e. a notary certificate on a separate page) will be acceptable