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George Washington describes the value of the Forks of the Ohio
George Washington arrived at the Forks of the Ohio and realized that it was the perfect spot for a fort. In his letter he described the Point and the Rivers. He also put that it was the perfect distance from fort Duquesne. -
Mary Jemison is captured
Mary Jemison was captured with her family except for her two brothers. Taken on Wednesday April 5th, 1758 from her home in Marsh Creek to Fort Duquesne. Her family was killed and scalped. -
Fort Pitt is built.
Fort Pitt was and still is a major Pittsburgh Landmark. It was the last fort built at the Forks of the Ohio. All that is left is the foundations. -
Pittsburgh’s street plan laid out
Pittsburgh has always been a maze of streets and a street plan was needed. The original plan only showed up to four blocks away from the fort. Later Grant, Penn and Liberty were added. -
Washington and Guyasuta make a treaty
Washington needed strong allies that understood the Indians way of fighting. He and Indian leader Guyasuta became allies and soon learned the Indian warfare. This treaty helped the British very much. -
Slavery Abolished
Pennsylvania was the first state to outlaw slavery. -
Pittsburgh Gazette founded by John Scull
John Scull was the man who created the first newspaper in Pittsburgh. Scull brought a printing press over the mountians so a newspaper could be possibly immideatly. His news paper was the first west of the Alleghanies. -
Pittsburg
Pittsburg had its 'h' taken off of the end of its name. Other states with the name Pittsburgh also had the 'h' taken off. -
Town.
Pittsburgh became a town. -
Borough!
Pittsburgh became a borough. -
Major Ebenezer Denny is 1st Mayor
Pittsburgh went from borough to city. Major Ebenezer Denny was a Revoulutionary War soldier and the first mayor of Pittsburgh. Major Denny was also a merchant and one-time partner of General James O'Hara in House Building. -
CITY!
Pittsburgh became a city! -
Stephen Collin Foster
Stephen Collin Foster was a song writer. He was born the same day that Thomas Jefferson and John Adams died. He also wrote the song Hard Times Come Again No More. -
Travel
When traveling people would either take packet boats or trains. Packet boats were pulled by horses that walked on a trail beside the water. People took trains from Philadelphia to Harrisburg and then packet boats to Pittsburgh. -
Mellon
Thomas Mellon, the founder of Mellon Bank, was born in Westmoreland County, Ireland, and he went to Western University for law. -
Mellon Family
Thomas Mellon got married to Sarah Jane Negley and had 8 children. -
Before the Fire
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Great Fire
Pittsburgh had been unusally dry and the were high wind levels. The fire started from a washerwoman's open fire behind William Diehl's icehouse. The flames covered one third of the city and destroyed 50-60 acres of land, nearly 1,000 buildings and homes. 12,000 were left homeless and two lives were lost. -
After the fire
After the Great Fire, Pittsburgh's people quickly rebuilt. To some it was known as "a doomed city." Pittsburgh was rebuilt in Greek Revival style. Only four buildings in the fires path survived. -
President Polk and Martin R. Delaney
Martin R. Delaney (an editor for the Mystery) urges President James Polk to take African American soldiers for the Mexican War. -
Wire Rope Bridges
John Roebling created the first wire rope that was used for bridges. The Monongahela bridge was the first cable suspension bridge. -
Jane Grey Swisshelm
Jane Grey Swisshelm was Pittsburgh's first woman abolitionist. She fought against slavery and for womens rights. She also helped get a law passed so married women could own property. -
First Through-Train from the East
The first through-train to go through Pittsburgh was finally possible after a few inclined planes and a tunnel. It was a fifteen hour trip from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia with this railroad. -
Mellon Bank
Thomas Mellon started Mellon Bank and ran it with his sons. -
St. Paul Cathedral
St. Paul Cathedral was acclaimed as one of the best churches in the United States. -
David N. White
David N. White an editor fo the Gazette founded the National Party in old LaFayette Hall. -
Pittsburgh Bank
The Pittsburgh Dollar Savings Instution was created. It sits on Fourth Ave. -
Iron Industry Boom
The Kloman Brothers, Jones, Lauth and Company, and Laughlin and Company were all part of the iron Industry "Boom" In Pittsburgh. Railroad expansions brought the need for rails and these companies helped. -
A new metal?
A new metal, steel, was discovered in Pittsburgh. -
Sanitary Fair
Felix R. Brunot, a physician, raised $322,217 from the 40 booths and bandstand at the sanitary fair. -
Battle of Chattanooga
Major General James Scott Negley and General William S. Rosencrans fought. -
Trains Keep Moving
Henry K. Porter of Smith and Porter invented the light switching locomotive and produced 600 a year until 1939. -
James Parton
James Parton was the man that found the metal that made Pittsburgh so famous. Steel. -
Rodman Gun
The rodman Gun was named after Lt. Thomas J. Rodman and helped a lot in the Cival War. -
Trains Are Moving Forward
George Westinghouse created the rotary steam engine and the air brake for trains. -
Inclines
Both the Duquesne and Mononghela inclines were very important for travel in the 1870's had around 500,000 passengers and no injuries. Thousands of people were carried up and down Mt. Washington on these Inclines. -
The Steel City
Andrew Carnegie created the first factory to mass produce Bessemer Steel. -
Railroad Strike
Pennsylvania Railroad Workers go on strike. Many trains were delayed. -
Smithfield Street Bridge
Gustav Lindenthal built designed the Smithfield Street Bridge which was very helpful for travel through Pittsburgh with the three rivers that ran through it. -
Pittsburgh Female College
The Pittsburgh Female college a.k.a. Chatham University, was an all girls college with many activities. Some included tennis. -
Courthouse
The Allegheny County courthouse and Jail was designed by Henry Hobson Richardson. It was built in the late 1800's and still stands today. -
Homestead Strike
One of the bloodiest strikes in American labor history. 14 people were killed, 11 steelworkers and 3 Pinkerton gaurds that Henry Clay Frick brought in. During this time the mill was known as Fort Frick because Andrew Carnegie left Frick in charge while he was in Scotland. -
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates and it was already one of the strongest-hitting clubs. They had some of the best batting averages of their time. -
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie was a big part of Pittsburgh’s history. He was the owner of the steel companies that got Pittsburgh one of its nicknames, “The Steel City”. He was also the reason for the many libraries throughout Pittsburgh’s surrounding communities. Andrew Carnegie was the richest man of his time with billions because of his companies. Before he died he gave all his money back to the people through charities and educational buildings. -
Luna Park
The 16-acre area full of fun and frights in Pittsburgh from 1905-1909 was known as Luna Park. It was a hilly amusement park on Baum Boulevard, North Craig Street, and Centre Avenue. There were many rides such as roller-coasters, picnic pavilions, carousels, a fun house, a Ferris wheel and many more. There were also many performances like bands, acrobats, horse-riders and aerial acts. Due to an accident in 1907 the popularity of Luna Park dropped and was later burned and never rebuilt. -
Rachel Carson
Rachel Carson, the author of Silent Spring, was born on the 27 of May, 1907. She graduated the Pennsylvania College for women in 1929 with a degree in zoology. She helped write U.S. Fish and Wildlife, The Sea Around Us. She died in 1964. -
The 'H' is back!
The 'h' was restored to Pittsburgh. After many unhappy people's complaints. -
KDKA
Dr. Frank Conrad was in his home in Wilkinsburg playing with a wireless telephone when the possibility of KDKA began. The Westinghouse Electric Corporation was in charge of the news broadcasting station. -
Radio Broadcast
Will Rogers and Ziefield Follies were a part of the first scheduled radio broadcast at the Pittsburgh Post on Wood Street and Liberty Avenue. The KDKA broadcast was the first of many. -
Cathedral of Learning
Chancellor John Bowman was the man who thought of the Cathedral of Learning. He wanted it to be a large Gothic-style building that could touch the clouds. -
St. Patrick's Day Flood
A flood on St. Patrick’s Day in 1936. The flood wiped away a lot of Downtown, Pittsburgh and surrounding areas. Flood levels were at 46 feet. It was the worst flood in history and around 100,000 buildings were destroyed. The flood was caused by the snow melting and water levels. -
Atom-Smasher
In Forest Hills there was the Westinghouse Atom-Smasher made by Dr. William E. Shoupp. -
Housing Project
President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Mayor Cornelius D. Scully and Senator Joseph Guffet were all a part of the housing project in Pittsburgh. It was at the Homestead Works and Mesta Machine Plant and was known as Terrace Village. -
World War 2
25,000 of Allegheny County's residents went to the Ohio River to see the ships that were used for carrying tanks. -
World War 2's End
The war was finally over and the only thing people wanted to do was celibrate and see their loved ones home safe. There was a big party in the streets of Pittsburgh in front of Soldier's and Sailor's. It included confetti, whistles, horns firecrackers and Dorthy Nesbitt singing from the back of a jeep. -
The Point
The Golden Triangle wasn't always buisnesses and Point State Park. In the 1940's it was full of railroads, frieght yards, warehouses, manufacturing businesses, taverns, rooming houses, a skating rink and a car pound. -
Walt Harper
Walt Harper helped bring Jazz Music to Pittsburgh. He had a few jazz clubs throughout the city like the Attic, the Nightclub and Harper's Jazz Club. -
Sophie Masloff
Sophie Masloff was the first female Mayor of Pittsburgh. She did work with the Aviary, zoo, Phipp's Conservatory and the Schenley Park golf course. -
Three Rivers Stadium
The Three Rivers Stadium was taken down and all that was left was a cloud of dust. The area was later rebuilt as Heinz Feild and PNC Park. -
G20 Summit
World leaders came to Pittsburgh to discuss the financial and economy issues that had began. Many were confused that Pittsburgh was picked to host this event but many say that it was for the scenery. -
The Fountain Returns
The fountain at Point State Park was under constrution as well as the rest of the park. It was a six-year multi-million dollar project and the park had many renovations. The park had the lawn fixed up as well as more trees and a new cafe. The fountain got lights to color the water during special events and a new electric pump that allows 40 feet in the height. -
Post-Gazette Strike
William Block Sr. was a publisher for the Post-Gazette and he was very excited when the paper started again after an 8-month strike.
