Meet the Literary Lover Who's Visited Every Library Branch in SF

Tayler Mehit is a literary lover in San Francisco, and she’s done something fantastic: she’s visited every singe library branch in SF. 

“I have been the library super fan for the last year,” Mehit says. It started as a 2025 goal. She put her holds at different branches to help get her started, but the project became so much more. 

There are 29 branches of the San Francisco Public Library. Along the way, Mehit met tons of librarians, got to know the Small Business Center, and learned more about the importance of libraries. 

“I think one of the number one things folks may not realize is that most of our branches are gorgeous and have a lot of outdoor space too,” Mehit says.  The Bayview library, for example, has a courtyard in the center of it, that Mehit says is “a little oasis in the middle of the city.” 

But libraries are more than books or architecture. They provide a vast array of programming. Mehit says she’s been impressed to see how functional some of it is. There’s tax prep, free financial advice for those of us under a certain income bracket, workshops, and more. “I've stumbled upon macrame classes… It really is a space where they're putting on an impressive amount of programming week over week.” She also has a special shoutout to the seed libraries.  

Mehit doesn’t necessarily have a favorite library, but she does have a memorable trip to the Visitation Valley branch. “The ceiling in that branch is incredible,” she explains. “And it's shaped. It's an octagonal building, which is not really similar to any of the other branches.” Head to her Instagram, @taylesofthecity, to see more of what she saw during her ambitious project.

The main library was in the news in 2025; it was the location outside of which an urban alchemy employee was tragically murdered. In the aftermath, some were saying that the area around the main library can feel a little sketchy, even though the library itself is a safe space. But Mehit chatted with a librarian at Main. “Something she said really stuck with me. The library is one of the few places where you can just be, and we don't expect anything of you.” There are very few places like that in the world at this point. “The library is there for everyone. And that is something that every librarian has really stressed to me.” 

Mehit challenges the perspective that any of the library branches are unsafe: “They have quite a large security presence at almost every branch. I think it's more just that the library is serving everyone and doing their best to make sure that it's a space for everybody.”

When it comes to the budget, every city service is feeling pinched. Mehit says, “Librarians are asked to be a lot of things, right? They're asked to monitor safety. They're asked to hold programs and care for anyone that comes into their branch. So I have like the utmost respect for what they're doing.” She says she hasn’t seen the budget impacts firsthand, but she points out that libraries are increasingly under threat as institutions of knowledge.  

Some libraries are newer, and Mehit points out that it’s because of community activism that there are now more branches, especially in the southeastern part of the city. “It took communities really rallying together in a lot of those parts of the cities to say like, no, we want a fully fledged branch, not a deposit station or something that is renting temporarily from a private landlord.” 

Mehit says there are a few things to look forward to. For instance, Ocean View is going to move to a larger location soon. And of course the  Mission branch will wrap up construction soon. Until then, Mehit says, “they have that temporary location that serves the community. Of course, it's a little bit smaller, but it's still an option for folks in the Mission until the big one is rebuilt.”

If someone hasn't been to a library for a long time, Mehit has some advice: “Don't be shy, talk to the librarians. They love to set you up with a library card, and they probably have a lot of great recommendations, whether it's helping you pick out a record that you could take home and listen to or a new book that you should read or joining in on an event.” 

What are Mehit’s future goals around libraries? “I learned that in some of those areas that are a little bit less serviced, there are actually library kiosks. So Treasure Island has one and it's almost like a vending machine for books. I'd really like to see that.” She also hopes one day to joyride the bookmobile.

Interested in challenging yourself to visit every branch like Tayler Mehit? Check out SFPL.org and plan your next visit soon!