Coal Fleets

For those who don't know, Pittsburgh was founded at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela River, forming the Ohio.  The area where they come together is known as either the golden triangle or the point.  From the original photo, it's impossible to tell whether this is an up or down river view.  The coal barges on the three rivers fed the steel mills and iron foundries that made Pittsburgh's air so bad that street lights were needed at mid-day.

This is another divided back card that was used,  It was sent to "Miss Elizabeth L'Hommedieu, Cuyahoga Falls, O."  The rather sad message, "All alone.  Busy all the time. Love to the kid. Geo. S."  And finally, the postmark, "PITTSBURGH, PA JUN 5 11 PM 1912."  There's also a separate mark, EAST LIBERTY STA."  When I lived in Pittsburgh, East Liberty was a downscale area, home to thrift stores and the Giant Eagle supermarket where I shopped for groceries.  I've heard that East Liberty has gentrified and the locals are now more likely to be tech types.

Pittsburgh and the Point Bridge

If I had thought this on going series of riverside postcards through, I would have posted this with the the Mount Washington Incline card.  Oh well, the rather spectacular looking bridge is long gone.  It's been replaced by a much more common looking structure.  However, downtown Pittsburgh, spelled with an H on the end is far more interesting.  A piece of advice, if you ever fly into Pittsburgh airport, wait until the sun goes down before entering the city proper.  The way the view opens up on exiting the Fort Pitt Tunnel, with the city lit up and the three rivers, is one of the great urban landscapes in the United States.

This card was sent to "Lewis C. Eames, North Bethel, Maine."  The message, "Sept 8, Dear L, You can sit in the swing chair with Myra or any chair if you come up 2 think.  Love B"  No idea if Myra would be coming with Lewis or if she lived with B.  Postmark, "GRAFTON MAINE, SEP 8, 1908."

Mt. Washington

I grew up in western Pennsylvania, and lived in Pittsburgh for a couple of years.  I rode the Mt. Washington Incline all the time.  Get to Pittsburgh, use the incline and get a great view of the city.

This is one of the old undivided back cards.  It was mailed to "Miss Josie Johnson, 301 West Erie St., Chicago Ill."  It was postmarked "BLAIRSVILLE PA FEB 19, 1907"  I grew up about 25 miles from Blairsville, and have been there hundreds of times.

Two Views of the Point

As anyone from Pittsburgh, PA can tell you, the point is where the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers come together to form the Ohio River.  These two views of the point are quiet a few years apart.  The top image shows the original Point Bridge.  It opened in 1877, crossed the Monongahela and connected the south side with downtown.  In 1927, the second Point Bridge was built right beside the original, which was dismantled after it's replacement opened.  In 1959, it happened again, but this time the new bridge was named the Fort Pitt Bridge, which can be seen on the right of the second image.   The first and second bridges ended in an industrial area, but now, the point area is a state park.  The land was taken, using eminent domain, in the fifties, but the park wasn't completed until the point fountain was completed in 1974.

The top card is postmarked, "PITTSBURG, PA SEPT. 25  7:30 P.M. 1908" and addressed to Mrs. W. W. Van Cleve, 289 So-18th-St, Newark, N.J."  And yes, Pittsburg is correct.  For some odd reason, the "H" was dropped for a number of years from the city name.

The second card isn't a very good picture, it's damaged, and looks as if someone stepped on it.  I bought it because I really liked the message on the back.  "Hi Jim!  Arrived here Nov. 23, 1954 and have been enjoying this wonderful metropolis and it's inhabitants ever since. Maybe you'll come see me sometime.  I think I'm going to stay here for awhile.  Latter, Eileen."  It's addressed to "Jimmy Daschbach, 1315 Wood St., Pgh., PA 15221"  So, the Point State Park Fountain can be seen in the photo, so Eileen has been in the city for at least twenty years, and is sending a card to Jimmy, also living in Pittsburgh, like he's some sort of distant friend.  I've always thought that a middle aged Eileen was trying to set something up with Jimmy.  And now that I'm well into my fifties, I like the idea of a tryst between a couple of aging Pittsburghers.  It gives me hope.

The Monongahela Incline

This is a bit of a companion piece to yesterdays post of the Homestead Steel Works, also along the Monongahela River. I was born and raised in a small coal mining town about fifty or so miles from downtown Pittsburgh. In the late fifties and sixties, that was close enough to be accessible but far enough away to be a special treat. Sadly, my father did not share my enthusiasm for Pittsburgh's trolleys, soon to be torn up and replaced by bus lines, and the incline railways to Mt. Washington on Pittsburgh's south side. After I made my inglorious exit from Penn State, (Who knew they were that sensitive about bounced tuition checks.), I moved to Pittsburgh and started taking the inclines up to Mt. Washington for no other reason than that I enjoyed the ride. The Mon Incline and the Duquesne Incline, less than a mile down river, where the two survivors of what once had been 17 funiculars along the Monongahela River Valley. The large building at the foot of the incline on the second card was the Pittsburgh & Lake Erie Railroad Terminal. It was pretty much a deserted hulk back then. I used to enjoy sitting in the quiet thinking about what it must have been like before passenger service ended on the south side. Eventually the preservation wing of the urban redevelopment movement got hold of the building. The passenger lobby became an upscale restaurant, and with my downscale income I found myself no longer welcome there. The old freight house became a shopping mall. Don't get me wrong, if that hadn't happened it would have been torn down, but really, how many Gaps can you visit? The Mon Incline was built in 1870. Today it's operated by Port Authority Transit, the public transit agency for Allegheny County. The Duquesne Incline is operated by a private foundation, and if I'm not getting them confused in my memory, the nicer of the two. Neither of these cards was used. On the back of both, "PUBLISHED BY I. ROBBINS & SON, PITTSBURGH, PA MADE IN U.S.A." I Robbins was in business from 1911 to 1943. Also, "PITTSBURGH PROMOTES PROGRESS" As well as the usual spot for stamps, and a not very interesting company logo. Go to Google, type in Monongahela Incline and then hit images. A lot of shots will come up, but be forewarned, a lot of them are of the Duquesne route.