Meda Logan, poet, circa 1907:
“Here’s to grim Pittsburgh the city of smoke, Where the sky’s but a memory and sunshine a joke, Where the incense of stogies perfumeth the air – But in spite of her faults we all love to be there.”
"For a century, Pittsburgh was a coal-reliant industrial powerhouse, and one of the most smog-choked cities in America. Sometimes gas lights had to be turned on at noon because of heavy smoke.
Air control ordinances passed in 1946. Residents and businesses were surprisingly eager to pay more for cleaner energy, even when it meant expensive heating bills during Pittsburgh's brutal winters. The air improved dramatically." (digital.library.pitt.edu / Via Kevin Tang )
And if you're not impressed by Pittsburgh's gloomy industrial past, take a look at other things Pittsburgh has given us:
1. Whiskey in America (there has even been a whisky rebellion)
2. Electricity
3. Pop Art (talking about Andy Warhol!)
4. Environmental Protection Agency
5. Emoticons :-)
6. First robotic institute in 1979 (so basically Pittsburgh gave us robots)
7. Polio Vaccine
8. Ferris Wheel
9. Big Mac
10. T.V. and Radio
11. Gas stations
12. Movie theaters
13. Steel (obviously)