Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh was named in 1758, by Scottish General John Forbes, in honor of British statesman William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham. As Forbes was a Scotsman, he probably pronounced the name PITS-bər-ə (similar to Edinburgh). Pittsburgh was incorporated as a borough on April 22, 1794, with the following Act: "Be it enacted by the Pennsylvania State Senate and Pennsylvania House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ... by the authority of the same, that the said town of Pittsburgh shall be ... erected into a borough, which shall be called the borough of Pittsburgh for ever." From 1891 to 1911, the city's name was federally recognized as "Pittsburg", though use of the final h was retained during this period by the city government and other local organizations. After a public campaign, the federal decision to drop the h was reversed. …

The area of the Ohio headwaters was long inhabited by the Shawnee and several other settled groups of Native Americans. The Seneca people called the confluence of the rivers Diondega or Jaödeogë’. Shannopin's Town was an 18th-century Lenape (Delaware) town located roughly from where Penn Avenue is today, below the mouth of Two Mile Run, from 30th Street to 39th Street. According to George Croghan, the town was situated on the south bank of the Allegheny, nearly opposite what is now known as Washington's Landing, formerly Herr's Island, in what is now the Lawrenceville neighborhood. The first known European to enter the region was the French explorer Robert de La Salle from Quebec during his 1669 expedition down the Ohio River. European pioneers, primarily Dutch, followed in the early 18th century. …

Pittsburgh has an area of 58.3 square miles (151 km2), of which 55.6 square miles (144 km2) is land and 2.8 square miles (7.3 km2), or 4.75%, is water. The 80th meridian west passes directly through the city's downtown. The city is located on the Allegheny Plateau, within the ecoregion of the Western Allegheny Plateau. The Downtown area (also known as the Golden Triangle) sits where the Allegheny River flows from the northeast and the Monongahela River from the southeast to form the Ohio River. The convergence is at Point State Park and is referred to as "the Point". The city extends east to include the Oakland and Shadyside sections, which are home to the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University, Chatham University, Carnegie Museum and Library, and many other educational, medical, and cultural institutions. …

Pittsburgh boasts a rich arts and culture scene, with a history dating back to 19th-century industrialists who commissioned and donated public works including Heinz Hall for the Performing Arts and the Benedum Center, home to the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Pittsburgh Opera. Other prominent groups include the River City Brass Band and Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra. The city also hosts a variety of smaller arts organizations, such as Pittsburgh Irish and Classical Theatre, Quantum Theatre, the Renaissance and Baroque Society of Pittsburgh, and Chatham Baroque, an early music ensemble. University choirs include the Pitt Men's Glee Club and Heinz Chapel Choir. …

Pittsburgh has adapted since the collapse of its century-long steel and electronics industries. The region has shifted to high technology, robotics, health care, nuclear engineering, tourism, biomedical technology, finance, education, and services. Annual payroll of the region's technology industries, when taken in aggregate, exceeded $10.8 billion in 2007, and in 2010 there were 1,600 technology companies. A National Bureau of Economic Research 2014 report named Pittsburgh the second-best U.S. city for intergenerational economic mobility or the American Dream. Reflecting the citywide shift from industry to technology, former factories have been renovated as modern office space. Google has research and technology offices in a refurbished 1918–1998 Nabisco factory, a complex known as Bakery Square. …

Pittsburgh is a city of bridges. With 446, it has three bridges more than Venice, Italy, which has historically held the title "City of Bridges". Around 40 bridges cross the three rivers near the city. The Smithfield Street Bridge was the world's first lenticular truss bridge. The city's Three Sisters Bridges offer a picturesque view of the city from the North. The southwestern "entrance" to Downtown for travelers coming in from Interstate 79 and the Pittsburgh International Airport is through the Fort Pitt Tunnel and over the Fort Pitt Bridge. The Fort Duquesne Bridge carrying Interstate 279 is the main gateway from Downtown to both PNC Park, Acrisure Stadium and the Rivers Casino. The Panhandle Bridge carries Pittsburgh Regional Transit's Blue/Red/Silver subway lines across the Monongahela River. …