History & local legend
Dormont Public Library on West Liberty Avenue has a gentle haunting tradition about a librarian who remained close to the place she loved. In one Pittsburgh telling, the woman is called Mary. After her death, books were said to fall from shelves and lights to flicker, but those who sensed her presence considered it friendly.
Mary’s husband continued visiting the library because he felt close to her there. The story ends with his own death: afterward, the disturbances stopped, as though she had been waiting for him before leaving.
Another version, included in an American Library Association collection, calls the librarian Alice and describes books disappearing and returning, along with the sound of a man and woman laughing.
