Pittsburgh is the second largest city (after Philadelphia) in the state of Pennsylvania, U.S.A. It was named after William Pitt (Pitt the Elder), 1st Earl of Chatham, who was Prime Minister of Great Britain, 1766-68. Pittsburgh developed as a centre of steel production in the mid-19th century. The name of the NFL team, Pittsburgh Steelers, is a reminder of the city’s best known industry. However, in the 1980s steel production in the U.S.A. collapsed and Pittsburgh was particularly badly affected. This is why it is now regarded as part of the “Rust Belt” in the north-eastern part of the U.S.A.
In 1875 Andrew Carnegie, the renowned Scottish-born industrialist, established a steel-works at North Braddock near Pittsburgh. Carnegie’s fortune grew and he was unstinting in his support of educational and cultural institutions. In Belfast alone, he funded the construction of no less than three libraries on Falls Road, Donegall Road and at Oldpark. One of Pittsburgh’s universities, the Carnegie Mellon University, bears his name, as well of that of brothers Andrew and Thomas Mellon, whose grandfather had emigrated to America from County Tyrone.
The street-signs in situ spell the name “Pittsburg Street” without the H, but the H is included on some street maps of Belfast and other sources. This is oddly appropriate, since there has been the same variation in the spelling of the city’s name. Between 1891 and 1911 the H was dropped from the official federal spelling of the name, but the city government retained the H during this time. After a campaign the federal decision was reversed.
“That on application of the owner, Mr William Redmond a new street on his property situate off York Road be named ‘Pittsburg Street’...” (Minutes, Improvement Committee, 15 March 1899).