They’re Called the Steelers for a Reason: Pittsburgh’s Iron and Steel Heritage at CLP

If you ask someone from out of town what they know about Pittsburgh the sentence they’d reply with would probably contain the word ‘steel.’ That’s because Pittsburgh’s industrial past has played a large part in creating the city’s identity. From the beloved Steelers to Pittsburgh Steel Man and the Steel City Derby Demons ‘steel’ is [...]

Will this be the Pirates’ year?

Can the Pirates end their infamous losing streak this year?  In two words- probably not.  In the early part of the season, there has been a glaring weakness for the team- they CAN’T HIT the ball!  They rank near the bottom of almost every hitting statistic in the league.  They are last in batting average, home [...]

It’s all history

People tend to forget that the word “history” contains the word “story”.  ~Ken Burns I have always been horrible at history.  I’m no good at memorizing dates and names to get good grades on history exams.  My brain just doesn’t work that way even if I would like it to. The funny thing is though, [...]

Free & Affordable Fridays In the ‘Burgh

I live in the suburbs. I know, I know– it is supremely uncool  to live anywhere other than the city. And sometimes, I really agree.  Besides the ever present city construction, the detours, and the unfortunateness of rarely having a backyard, there are some true benefits to living in an urban area– public swimming pools, [...]

Batburgh: The Dark Knight Rises rolls into town

I work at Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Main in Oakland. Right outside of our great old library is an area called “The Bosque.” It’s the area full of London Plane Trees between the library/museum buildings and Schenley Plaza. The bosque is full of picnic tables and features a fountain by great American sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens. [...]

Mary Schenley: slightly scandalous.

My mind has been wiped clean of topics to blog about as I diligently make a prototype of a magazine bowl for East Liberty’s summer art club, so I will regale you with a local tale. Something to think about as you maybe find time to enjoy the outdoors in one of Pittsburgh’s lovely parks. [...]

Batman “The Dark Knight Rises” will be filming in Pittsburgh this summer. What do you think?

Pittsburgh will stand in for Gotham City in Christopher Nolan’s third Batman film “The Dark Knight Rises!” What do you think? Take our poll and tell us! (polls)

My First Post too!

Hello all!   Allow me to introduce myself—I am Julie Moore, the new children’s and teen librarian at CLP Beechview. I will be blogging regularly, so I thought I’d tell you a little about myself first.     So, me—this is my first official library job since I finished grad school. Before this, I worked as [...]

Rivalry-entertaining the masses since the old testament

I will accept no commission that would tend to create a rivalry with Grant. I want him to hold what he has earned and got. I have all the rank I want. – William Tecumseh Sherman Wow, that’s a pretty nice quote from Civil War General William Tecumseh Sherman, eh?  He and General (and 18th [...]

Local Zombies and Specters

Pittsburgh is the setting for a healthy number of very excellent (and some excellently cheesy) horror films: MARTIN: an excellent George Romero film INNOCENT BLOOD: An excellent and funny John Landis (you know, director Michael Jackson’s Thriller video?) film BLOODSUCKING PHAROAHS IN PITTSBURGH: An excellently cheesy film For more local recommendations, check out these excellent [...]