Embedded Files
Pittsburgh
There are many famous figures of Pittsburgh, some of them making Pittsburgh, well, Pittsburgh. Without some of these Pittsburgh wouldn't be how it is today. I mentioned before the people donated land for parks, and some of the athletes on Pittsburgh's sports teams. We'll be talking about two of them, Andrew Carnegie and Fred Rogers.
Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish-born American who played a big role in the mass-expansion of America's steel industry in the 1800s and 1900s and was an important philanthropist. He immigrated to the U.S. with his family in 1848 to Allegheny, PA, which is now apart of the city of Pittsburgh when it was annexed in 1907. He started in the railroad industry at the Pennsylvania Railroad Co. in the 1850s and invested in many industrial companies. By the 1870s Carnegie invested in the Pittsburgh-based J. Edgar Thomson Works, and the steel industry steel continued to expand in PA and the U.S. from there (Britannica, 2024).
Carnegie was a philanthropist in almost all 50 states in the U.S, but since some of his closest connections were in Pittsburgh, some of his biggest impacts were here. The Carnegie Libraries and Museums of Pittsburgh was established to improve Pittsburgh's cultural facilities. Most of the 50 states have at least one Carnegie Library in it. Carnegie Technical Schools, now Carnegie Mellon University, was established for technical education, as well as the many other impacts he did. There is even a borough. There is even the borough of Carnegie, which is west of Pittsburgh and named after Andrew Carnegie.
Fred Rogers was a television host and producer who is best known for his show Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, which ran for over 30 years, from the 60s to the early 2000s. He was born in Latrobe, PA, and obtained a divinity degree at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary in 1962. He started in the television industry by working for NBC in New York City before working for WQED in Pittsburgh. Rogers started in children's television as a puppeteer for an NBC show called The Children's Corner in the 1950s (Britannica, 2024). His impact in children's programming was big as it was different from how children's television was. It was a radical educational program promoted kindness and inclusiveness and for children to be their true self. There have been several spin-off programs with characters and sets in the show and even documentaries as a result of Rogers' work (Bertram, 2020).
Image from Wikimedia Commons, public domain
Erie
There aren’t many famous people who were born in Erie and make it very clear that they were raised here, but there are a few familiar names out in the world that actually grew up right in this area.
The first person that I would like to mention is Oliver Hazard Perry. Although he was not born in Erie, he has still been a very large part of our city’s history. He was given the commands to observe the fleet that was stationed in Erie during the War of 1812 and leading up to the Battle of Lake Erie. He has been recognized around the city and the county as a hero who led his country to victory. His name is very prominent around the Bayfront because of his involvement with the lake. The aforementioned Perry Square is just one example of parts of Erie that are dedicated to Oliver Hazard Perry.
Image from Wikimedia Commons, public domain
Another famous name that was born and raised in Erie is Pat Monahan, the lead singer from Train. Pat Monahan grew up in Erie and went to McDowell High School. Since high school, he and his first wife had children and raised them in Fairview, which is a small town out west of the center of Erie. They then moved to California so he could continue his music career. Monahan went on to create hits such as “Hey, Soul Sister”, “Drops of Jupiter”, and “50 Ways to Say Goodbye”, and many others.
Image from Wikimedia Commons, public domain
Other famous names that grew up in Erie include Marc Brown, who is the author of the Arthur book series, Ann B. Davis, who was the nanny on the show The Brady Bunch, Chris Vrenna, who was the drummer for the rock band Nine Inch Nails, and football legend Fred Biletnikoff. The football field at Fred Biletnikoff’s old high school is dedicated and named after him. Although the fact that these people have come from Erie is not a majorly known fact, it is something that a lot of us Erie citizens are proud to announce. Even some rising stars, like Walker Scobell, have lived in Erie for some time in their lives. And, with social media stars rising, Erie is producing more and more stars every day.
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse