History of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the county seat of Allegheny County and a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, it is the most populous city in Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second most populous city in Pennsylvania after Philadelphia, and the 68th largest city in the United States. The city anchors the Greater Pittsburgh metropolitan area of Western Pennsylvania; with a population of 2.37 million, it is the most populous in the Ohio Valley and Appalachia, the second-most populous in Pennsylvania, and the 27th-most populous in the United States. It is the largest city in the combined statistical area of Pittsburgh, New Castle, and Weirton, which extends into Ohio and West Virginia.
Pittsburgh is located in southwest Pennsylvania at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers, which form the Ohio River. Pittsburgh is known as both "the Steel City" and "the City of Bridges" due to its dominant role in the history of the U.S. steel industry and its 446 bridges, respectively. The city is home to thirty skyscrapers, two inclined railways, a pre-revolutionary fortification, and Point State Park at the confluence of the rivers. As the mineral-rich Allegheny Mountains led to the region being contested by the French and British empires, Virginians, Whiskey Rebels, and Civil War raiders, the city developed as a vital link between the Atlantic coast and Midwest.
In addition to steel, Pittsburgh has been a leader in the production of important materials such as aluminum, glass, and petroleum. Moreover, it is a leader in the computing, electronics, and automotive industries. During a portion of the 20th century, Pittsburgh trailed only New York City and Chicago in terms of corporate headquarters employment, and it had the highest concentration of U.S. stockholders per capita. During the 1970s and 1980s, blue-collar workers were laid off as steel and other heavy industries declined, and thousands of white-collar workers lost their jobs when several Pittsburgh-based companies relocated. The population peaked at 675 000 in 1950 and declined to 370,000 in 1990. Despite this, the region's industrial past has produced renowned museums, medical centers, parks, research facilities, and a diverse cultural district.
Following the year 1990, Pittsburgh became a center for the health care, education, and technology industries. Pittsburgh is home to large medical providers, including the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and Allegheny Health Network, as well as 68 colleges and universities, including Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh, which are leaders in research and development. Google, Apple, Bosch, Meta, Nokia, Autodesk, Amazon, Microsoft, and IBM are among the roughly 1,600 technology companies with a presence in Pittsburgh, which generate $20.7 billion annually in payrolls.
The research agenda has been supported by federal funds. Cyber defense, software engineering, robotics, energy research, and the nuclear navy have all had their headquarters located in this region. The fifth-largest bank in the United States, eight Fortune 500 companies, and six of the top 300 U.S. law firms have their global headquarters in the region, while RAND Corporation, BNY Mellon, Nova, FedEx, Bayer, and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health have regional bases that helped Pittsburgh become the sixth-best area for U.S. job growth.
In 2015, Metropolis magazine ranked Pittsburgh among the "eleven most livable cities in the world." Pittsburgh was ranked as the most or second-most livable city in the United States by The Economist's Global Liveability Ranking in 2005, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2014, and 2018. Energy extraction and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design are concentrated in this region. Learn about the geography of Pittsburgh Pennsylvania.