Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County: Pleasant Ridge

As I found myself at the Pleasant Ridge Branch Library, I thought I was at the Northside Branch again. While the two don’t look that much alike, I could tell the Pleasant Ridge Branch was close in age to the other (current site opened in 1929), it had the same general rectangular shape, and it had the same brick exterior. Inside it was smaller, but it still reminded me of a mini version of the former Cumminville Branch in Northside.
No matter how old a Cincinnati Public Library branch is, they all keep up with the times and have large DVD selections. At Pleasant Ridge, it was no different as there were a ton of movies and also many popular TV shows now on DVD. I also saw lots of magazines and a small selection of newspapers on top of the many books. There was more or less a left and right side to the check out area, but it was essentially all one big room. On one side there was a large children’s/teen section, and there were several computers too (a few on the other side).
I read online that the library has a «collection of material about the history of the community,» and one thing that actually caught my eye while at the library was an upcoming event called «Professional baseball players live among us.» In the display case near the door it said that on August 11^th, six former pro baseball players (some Major League, some Negro Leagues, some both) will be at the branch to meet with library-​goers and to sign autographs. One of those players will be Chuck Harmon, the first African-​American to play for the Cincinnati Reds, while Leo Cardenas (Reds), Bill Schlesinger (Red Sox), and Charlie «Whip» Davis (Memphis Red Sox) are a few of the other former ball players expected to be on hand. A program like that is very cool in itself, but also special for those in the area. Just last week they even had the UC mascot stop in.
Overall the Pleasant Branch Library isn’t that great but it’s organized and does have a pair of meeting areas that fit 10 and 100 people. The best thing is the historical material about the community, as well as the related programs they hold like the upcoming baseball one.