# Tell Me About Pittsburgh, Then.. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 24, 2015, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786 "2015-01-24T20:47:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2015, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/61 "2015-01-27T17:14:13Z")
> [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](#): > > There’s really no reason you’d want to go somewhere like Butler. Going to Butler is fine – just don’t live there. They have a great vintage motorcycle parts shop, a terrific gun shop, and some of the food around the area is top notch. Buffalo Creek down towards Worthington is a nice year-round trout fishery. Its just the natives who make Butler a little dicey. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2015, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/62 "2015-01-27T17:40:42Z")
> [@kopek](#): > > Going to Butler is fine – just don’t live there. They have a great vintage motorcycle parts shop, a terrific gun shop, and some of the food around the area is top notch. Buffalo Creek down towards Worthington is a nice year-round trout fishery. Its just the natives who make Butler a little dicey. Heh. If the gun shop is the big place on 356, I’ve been there! And I’ve kayaked from Worthington (where a buddy lives) down to Sarver the weekend before trout opens (a tradition) many times. There is a cigar bar/restaurant in Butler called The Brick House where my buddy Jimmy Adler has played a few times. ---
**Author:** ![elninost0rm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ed655f/32.png) [@elninost0rm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elninost0rm)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2015, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/63 "2015-01-27T19:54:04Z")
The fact that there are 3 people (myself included) all living in Beaver County in this thread alone is pretty fascinating to me. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2015, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/64 "2015-01-27T20:03:37Z")
I’m not seeing it. I’m from a small town (Punxsutawney), I went to school in Indiana, and I’ve lived in the Pittsburgh area since 1991. You know what? Hoopies are hoopies and Butler has no greater percentage of them than does Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh, I think this thread has pretty well established, isn’t even a real place. It’s a term of convenience for a whole bunch of Butler (or smaller) sized places that are real close together. Yinzers are just hoopies with a pretty accent. They’re kind of like Aussies in that respect (according to my 1st wife who was from there). ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2015, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/65 "2015-01-27T20:05:17Z")
Hey, look! A groundhog!! ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2015, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/66 "2015-01-27T20:07:10Z")
Where? _looks up_ ---
**Author:** ![Apocalypso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Apocalypso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apocalypso)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2015, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/67 "2015-01-27T23:03:09Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > I’m not seeing it. I’m from a small town (Punxsutawney), I went to school in Indiana, and I’ve lived in the Pittsburgh area since 1991. You know what? Hoopies are hoopies and Butler has no greater percentage of them than does Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh, I think this thread has pretty well established, isn’t even a real place. It’s a term of convenience for a whole bunch of Butler (or smaller) sized places that are real close together. Yinzers are just hoopies with a pretty accent. They’re kind of like Aussies in that respect (according to my 1st wife who was from there). What is a Hoopie? ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2015, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/68 "2015-01-27T23:14:04Z")
They’re kind of like less classy and charming hillbillies. Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia are all slam full of them. I’m one. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Mad\_Hermit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b5ac83/32.png) [@The\_Mad\_Hermit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Mad_Hermit)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2015, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/69 "2015-01-27T23:52:30Z")
I live near Blairsville but go to Indiana daily, and spend alternate weekends in Lawrenceville. It would be nice to set a Dope Fest up this year. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/70 "2015-01-28T00:26:40Z")
You can get onions on Primantis, IIRC. I did, I think – you just have to ask for them. > [@kayaker](#): > > I forget the name of the place, but the Sushi bordered on being jerky. A few miles north of the city. But you could eat as much as you wanted. > > And Carbone’s, while close to Greensburg, is actually in [Crabtree, about 5 miles before you reach Greensburg proper.](http://www.carbonesrestaurant.com) but the best hidden treasure for Italian food is in Vandergrift, close to my home, [Anna’s Cucina Rustica.](http://www.annascucinarustica.com) the restaurant is in the family’s basement and the food is amazing. A true hidden treasure. We eat there once or twice a month. > ETA: Found it. [Tokyo Sushi Buffet. Home of the warm raw oysters.](http://tokyosushibuffet.com) Oh, I know Crabtree – I have family who live within walking distance of the restaurant. But I figured it was easier to just say Greensburg, because it’s so far back in the sticks. Pierogies, haluski and stuffed cabbage roll (we called the halupki in our family) were definitely NOT invented here. They’re all authentic Polish cuisine. But due to the large amount of Polish-Americans here, they’ve become a part of Pittsburgh’s as well. (I never liked pigs in a blanket, but I do loves me some pierogies. NOT Mrs. T’s, though. Homemade are the only way to go.) ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/71 "2015-01-28T01:22:34Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > They’re kind of like less classy and charming hillbillies. Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia are all slam full of them. I’m one. Another phrase/term can be ridgerunner to differentiate them from us breaker-boys. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/72 "2015-01-28T01:27:30Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Pierogies, haluski and stuffed cabbage roll (we called the halupki in our family) were definitely NOT invented here. They’re all authentic Polish cuisine. Depending on how you make them (and spell it), they can be Polish, Ukrainian, Serbia, Moldavian ----- tons of places. Maybe even German if we stretch things a little on the Pirohi. My folks are Yakhirghiz/Siberian but we tend to do more the Georgian style. Which is a great thing with all three; you can eat at a different church or firehall dinner every week and order the same thing every week and never get two exactly the same. ---
**Author:** ![WPA-Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a6a055/32.png) [@WPA-Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WPA-Guy)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/73 "2015-01-28T05:47:38Z")
Tell Me About Pittsburgh, Then… The Pittsburgh area is a wildly diverse place. Water plays a big part. Three rivers converge at the heart of the region: Allegheny, Monongehela, and Ohio, and play a huge roll in all of Western PA. Pittsburgh is the second largest inland port in the United States. There are over 2,000 bridges in Allegheny County. Boating is huge in the area. Hills play a big part. The Pittsburgh area is in the Allegheny Plateau of the Appalachin Mountains, and the elevations widly vary from a low of 700 ft at the Point of the three rivers to 1,400 ft at Observatory Hill in the North Hills. Most cities have municipal streets and sidewalks; Pittsburgh adds 750 municipal stairs going up and down the steep hills. There are two “Inclines”, subway-like transport going up and down Mt. Washington. There used to be over 16 in the city. And don’t forget all the tunnels under the hills. Somewhere around 100 tunnels are in the county. There are over 2.7 million people who live in the Metropolitan Region, only a little over 300,000 live in the city itself. As stated before, “Pittsburgh” is more used as the name of the whole area to outsiders. Locally, you are from Manchester or East Liberty or Aspinwall or even Cranberry. At one time, Pittsburgh was the 8th largest city in the USA, so some places are densely built. And there was no planning of growth, so stuff is built anywhere (check out the old pictures of downtown before 1950 - a mixture of mills, skyscapers, and railroad tracks and stations.) Once you get away from the urban part, Western PA can be very rural. There are many Amish that live in WPA. There are lots of books written on life in Pittsburgh, so I hope this little bit helps give you the flavor of the area. ---
**Author:** ![Reeses\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reeses_monkey/32/2885_2.png) [@Reeses\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeses_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/74 "2015-01-28T12:06:54Z")
> [@elninost0rm](#): > > The fact that there are 3 people (myself included) all living in Beaver County in this thread alone is pretty fascinating to me. I grew up in Beaver County and now live in Johnstown. If any if you have seen a book arch at your local library, that was from my wedding. We donated it to the BC library system. It started out in Beaver but last I heard it was in Aliquippa. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/75 "2015-01-28T12:14:49Z")
> [@Reeses\_Monkey](#): > > I grew up in Beaver County and now live in Johnstown. If any if you have seen a book arch at your local library, that was from my wedding. We donated it to the BC library system. It started out in Beaver but last I heard it was in Aliquippa. You live in Johnstown? We go to the music festival every year. Can you explain why Johnstown embraces the flood so? The name of the festival changed a few years back to the Flood City Music Festival, and the city signage has a flood motif. Oh, and I drive from our home in Apollo to Shear Magic in JTown for haircuts. Long story. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/76 "2015-01-28T12:32:25Z")
I don’t get the sense of Pittsburgh being “not a city” but a loose collective of neighborhoods. At least, it’s no different than anywhere else I lived. Sure, when you’re talking to someone from the area, you start with the neighborhood. But people living in St. Louis don’t tell each other, “I’m from St. Louis” when they meet. “Oh really? I’m from St. Louis, too.” If anything, people in Pittsburgh may be more likely to orient one another to where they are from by asking what high school they went to, but even that isn’t that different. ---
**Author:** ![Nayna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ebca7d/32.png) [@Nayna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nayna)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/77 "2015-01-28T12:48:40Z")
I was going to say the same thing. If I were talking to somebody from, say, out of state, and I answered the question, “Where do you live?” with the name of my actual small town, the next question would be, “Where is that?” And I’d say, “Just outside of Pittsburgh.” So I skip a step! ---
**Author:** ![Reeses\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reeses_monkey/32/2885_2.png) [@Reeses\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeses_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/78 "2015-01-28T20:25:00Z")
Probably because the flood is the only big thing that’s ever happened here. Aside from being the birthplace of famed SNL and Police Academy 2,3 and 4 alumnus [Tim Kazurinsky](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Kazurinsky), that is. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/79 "2015-01-28T20:29:31Z")
Not one flood. Three of them. All entailed significant loss of life and one of them was apocalyptic in the destruction and loss of life it caused. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2015, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786/80 "2015-01-28T20:32:08Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Not one flood. Three of them. All entailed significant loss of life and one of them was apocalyptic in the destruction and loss of life it caused. Yep, I’ve visited the Flood Museum (worth a look!). I just don’t understand wanting to embrace it so. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-pittsburgh-then/710786.md?page=5)