Community Corner

Know What History Happened Around Here?

Pennsylvania Historical Markers show where history was made in the South Hills area.

Have you ever taken the time to read the blue historical markers along roads in the South Hills area?

If the answer is "no," then maybe it's time for a Sunday drive that can double as a history lesson.

Since 1946, the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission has placed historical markers to capture the memory of people, places and events that have affected Pennsylvanians.

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Across the state, according to the commission's website, "more than 2,000 cast aluminum markers tell the stories of Native Americans and settlers, government and politics, athletes, entertainers, artists, struggles for freedom and equality, factories and businesses, and a multitude of other topics." While some structures no longer exist and people have long left the earth, they live on in the markers that remember their significance to the western Pennsylvania area.

Some of the many local historical markers, their locations and significance are below (Click here to see even more details about the listings or find others of interest in Allegheny County.):

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BETHEL PARK

  • Bethel Presbyterian Church— 2977 Bethel Church Rd. between Routes 88 & 19. Founded 1776 by the Rev. John McMillan, a pioneer minister and educator, the church is the mother of five nearby churches and has given its name to the community. 
CARNEGIE
  • Honus Wagner— Mansfield Boulevard & Chartiers Street. The "Flying Dutchman," who played and coached for the Pittsburgh Pirates, was hailed as baseball's greatest shortstop and one of its finest all-around players. 

COLLIER TOWNSHIP

  • Neville House—Route 50 near Collier/Heidelberg border. Known as Woodville. Built 1785, it was the refuge of Gen. John Neville's family when some Whiskey Rebels burned his home at Bower Hill.
  • William T. Kerr—4 Columbia Ave. at Noblestown Road, Rennersdale. Kerr, known as "The Father of Flag Day,"  founded the American Flag Day Association and served as its president for 50 years.

HEIDELBERG

  • Heidelberg Raceway and Sports Arena—2055 Washington Pike. The former Pittsburgh Racing Association racetrack, built in 1948, was the site of the 1956 final performance of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus under the Big Top.
HOMESTEAD/MUNHALL
  • Bost Building—617-623 E. 8th Ave. near Heisel Street. Through the summer of 1892, it was headquarters for the strike committee of the Amalgamated Association of Iron & Steel Workers. 
  • Homestead Strike— 880 E Waterfront Dr., Munhall. On July 6, 1892, with orders from the Carnegie Steel Co., 300 Pinkerton agents attempted to land near here. Strikers and citizens repulsed them but seven workers and three Pinkertons were killed. 
  • Homestead Strike Victims— 102 E. 22nd St., near Main Street., Munhall. In two adjoining cemeteries are buried six of the seven Carnegie Steel Company workers killed during the "Battle of Homestead" on July 6, 1892. 
  • Homestead Grays—Amity Street at The Waterfront, at the Filene's Basement lot and railroad tracks. The legendary baseball team that dominated the Negro Baseball Leagues during the first half of the 20th century was founded by steelworkers in 1900.
PITTSBURGH
  • John M. Phillips—St. Pius X Byzantine Catholic Church, 2336 Brownsville Rd. Creator of the state game land system, Phillips was a conservationist, industrialist and engineer, he was among the first to introduce Boy Scouting in Pennsylvania.
SCOTT TOWNSHIP
  • Bower Hill—292 Kane Blvd. Site of Gen. John Neville's mansion, which burned to the ground by insurgents during a major escalation of violence in the Whiskey Rebellion.
  • Old St. Luke's Church—330 Old Washington Pike. It is the oldest Episcopal Church in southwestern Pennsylvania, founded after the French and Indian War by veteran Maj. William Lea on his land grant. 

Nominations for historical markers may be submitted by any person or organization. The PHMC maintains its historical markers on a cyclical basis through a contract. To report a marker as missing, broken or in poor condition, e-mail the Historical Marker Program at kgalle@pa.gov.


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