Hazelwood (Pittsburgh)
Encyclopedia
Hazelwood is a neighborhood of Pittsburgh
, Pennsylvania
in the United States
. It is represented on Pittsburgh City Council by Douglas Shields
. It is bordered by Greenfield
and Oakland
on the north, Squirrel Hill
and Glen Hazel
on the east, and the Monongahela River
on the south and west. The Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire houses 13 Engine and 13 Truck in Hazelwood.
made with the Native-Americans. This area would include Hazelwood and Greenfield of the 15th ward.
Hazelwood takes its name from the hazelnut trees which once flourished along the Monongahela river. The first settlers were of Scottish
descent and settled what was known as Scotch Bottom. This area ran from Four Mile Run
(lower Greenfield) to Six Mile Ferry, four and six miles (10 km) from the Point
(where the Allegheny
and Monongahela Rivers merge) respectively. Among the first settlers, was John Woods
, a politician who built his 'Hazel Hill' estate in 1784. That house still stands, the second oldest stone building in Pittsburgh after The Fort Pitt Blockhouse
. Eventually, large farms were cut out of the wooded hills attracting more residents and supplying the area with further wealth.
, of the Pittsburgh and Connellsville Railroad and later of Jones and Laughlin. Unlike most lines, this railroad was built inland as to respect the residents concern of maintaining the rivers aesthetic value. This railroad would later separate Hazelwood into two sections, coining the local term 'below the tracks'. In 1869 Hazelwood was incorporated into the city, and by the following year the railway had spurred iron and steel industries, railroading, boatbuilding and the river trade.
By the late 19th century Hazelwood was a bustling town. In the 1950s the neighborhood was host to over 200 businesses. It had become home to large Hungarian, Italian, Slovak
, Carpatho-Rusin
, Polish
, and Irish
populations. With the construction of the Civic Arena
in the Hill District
large African-American populations made Hazelwood a home.
In the 1980s the steel industry began to decline. As the industry packed up, so did business and many residents. Like many areas in the rust-belt, Hazelwood fell into disrepair. Hazelwood was home to the city of Pittsburgh's last operating steel mill
, the Hazelwood Coke Works, which was owned by Jones and Laughlin and later, its parent company, LTV, when it closed in 1998.
Recently, Hazelwood has been working to improve as a community. Many abandoned buildings have been razed, and new ones constructed in their place.
Hazelwood and Glen Hazel are family-oriented neighborhoods, with many community activities focusing on youth programs. The neighborhoods are noted for their numerous churches and the active roles they play in building community spirit and pride in their residents.
According to a December 23, 2008 article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
, Dimperio's Market, the only full service grocery store in Hazelwood, would close because of shoplifters.
Notable Residents
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is represented on Pittsburgh City Council by Douglas Shields
Doug Shields
Douglas A. Shields represents the 5th Council District in the City of Pittsburgh. He has served on Pittsburgh City Council since January 2004, also serving as Pittsburgh City Council President from 2008 to 2010...
. It is bordered by Greenfield
Greenfield (Pittsburgh)
Greenfield is a neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. It is represented on by Doug Shields.Greenfield is a member of Pittsburgh's 15th Ward, which includes the neighborhoods of Greenfield and Four Mile Run. Greenfield is adjacent to the Pittsburgh neighborhoods of Hazelwood to...
and Oakland
Oakland (Pittsburgh)
Oakland is the academic, cultural, and healthcare center of Pittsburgh and is Pennsylvania's third largest "Downtown". Only Center City Philadelphia and Downtown Pittsburgh can claim more economic and social activity than Oakland...
on the north, Squirrel Hill
Squirrel Hill
Squirrel Hill is a residential neighborhood in the east end of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The city officially divides it into two neighborhoods, Squirrel Hill North and Squirrel Hill South, but it is almost universally treated as a single neighborhood...
and Glen Hazel
Glen Hazel (Pittsburgh)
Glen Hazel is a neighborhood on Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania's east city area. It has both zip codes of 15207 and 15217, and has representation on Pittsburgh City Council by Douglas Shields....
on the east, and the Monongahela River
Monongahela River
The Monongahela River is a river on the Allegheny Plateau in north-central West Virginia and southwestern Pennsylvania in the United States...
on the south and west. The Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire houses 13 Engine and 13 Truck in Hazelwood.
Early history
In 1758 a large tract of woodland was purchased for $10,000 under the Stanwix TreatyTreaty of Fort Stanwix
The Treaty of Fort Stanwix was an important treaty between North American Indians and the British Empire. It was signed in 1768 at Fort Stanwix, located in present-day Rome, New York...
made with the Native-Americans. This area would include Hazelwood and Greenfield of the 15th ward.
Hazelwood takes its name from the hazelnut trees which once flourished along the Monongahela river. The first settlers were of Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
descent and settled what was known as Scotch Bottom. This area ran from Four Mile Run
Four Mile Run (Pittsburgh)
Four Mile Run is a small neighborhood in the Greenfield section of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States."The Run" was named for a stream—about four miles above The Point—that empties there into the Monongahela River. The neighborhood is distinctive because of its severe geographic isolation from...
(lower Greenfield) to Six Mile Ferry, four and six miles (10 km) from the Point
Point State Park
Point State Park is a Pennsylvania state park on in Downtown Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, USA, at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers, forming the Ohio River....
(where the Allegheny
Allegheny River
The Allegheny River is a principal tributary of the Ohio River; it is located in the Eastern United States. The Allegheny River joins with the Monongahela River to form the Ohio River at the "Point" of Point State Park in Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...
and Monongahela Rivers merge) respectively. Among the first settlers, was John Woods
John Woods (Pennsylvania)
John Woods was a United States Representative from Pennsylvania....
, a politician who built his 'Hazel Hill' estate in 1784. That house still stands, the second oldest stone building in Pittsburgh after The Fort Pitt Blockhouse
Fort Pitt (Pennsylvania)
Fort Pitt was a fort built at the location of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.-French and Indian War:The fort was built from 1759 to 1761 during the French and Indian War , next to the site of former Fort Duquesne, at the confluence the Allegheny River and the Monongahela River...
. Eventually, large farms were cut out of the wooded hills attracting more residents and supplying the area with further wealth.
Industrial age
The first track of railroad was built by Mr. B. F. JonesBenjamin Franklin Jones (Pittsburgh)
Benjamin Franklin Jones was a pioneer of the iron and steel industry in Pittsburgh. Originally involved in the river barge industry, he purchased a share in American Iron Works in 1851, along with Bernard Lauth. He later joined with James H...
, of the Pittsburgh and Connellsville Railroad and later of Jones and Laughlin. Unlike most lines, this railroad was built inland as to respect the residents concern of maintaining the rivers aesthetic value. This railroad would later separate Hazelwood into two sections, coining the local term 'below the tracks'. In 1869 Hazelwood was incorporated into the city, and by the following year the railway had spurred iron and steel industries, railroading, boatbuilding and the river trade.
By the late 19th century Hazelwood was a bustling town. In the 1950s the neighborhood was host to over 200 businesses. It had become home to large Hungarian, Italian, Slovak
Slovaks
The Slovaks, Slovak people, or Slovakians are a West Slavic people that primarily inhabit Slovakia and speak the Slovak language, which is closely related to the Czech language.Most Slovaks today live within the borders of the independent Slovakia...
, Carpatho-Rusin
Rusyns
Carpatho-Rusyns are a primarily diasporic ethnic group who speak an Eastern Slavic language, or Ukrainian dialect, known as Rusyn. Carpatho-Rusyns descend from a minority of Ruthenians who did not adopt the use of the ethnonym "Ukrainian" in the early twentieth century...
, Polish
Polish American
A Polish American , is a citizen of the United States of Polish descent. There are an estimated 10 million Polish Americans, representing about 3.2% of the population of the United States...
, and Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
populations. With the construction of the Civic Arena
Mellon Arena
Civic Arena is an indoor arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that is currently undergoing demolition. It was the first retractable roof major sports venue in the world, covering 170,000 sq. feet and constructed with just shy of 3,000 tons of Pittsburgh steel...
in the Hill District
Hill District (Pittsburgh)
The Hill District is a collection of neighborhoods that is considered by many to be the cultural center of African-American life in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, an American city. Harlem Renaissance poet Claude McKay once called the district "the crossroads of the world," referring to the...
large African-American populations made Hazelwood a home.
In the 1980s the steel industry began to decline. As the industry packed up, so did business and many residents. Like many areas in the rust-belt, Hazelwood fell into disrepair. Hazelwood was home to the city of Pittsburgh's last operating steel mill
Steel mill
A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel.Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon. It is produced in a two-stage process. First, iron ore is reduced or smelted with coke and limestone in a blast furnace, producing molten iron which is either cast into pig iron or...
, the Hazelwood Coke Works, which was owned by Jones and Laughlin and later, its parent company, LTV, when it closed in 1998.
Recently, Hazelwood has been working to improve as a community. Many abandoned buildings have been razed, and new ones constructed in their place.
Hazelwood and Glen Hazel are family-oriented neighborhoods, with many community activities focusing on youth programs. The neighborhoods are noted for their numerous churches and the active roles they play in building community spirit and pride in their residents.
According to a December 23, 2008 article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also known simply as the "PG," is the largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.-Early history:...
, Dimperio's Market, the only full service grocery store in Hazelwood, would close because of shoplifters.
Notable Residents
- Playwright August WilsonAugust WilsonAugust Wilson was an American playwright whose work included a series of ten plays, The Pittsburgh Cycle, for which he received two Pulitzer Prizes for Drama...
lived in Hazelwood as a teenager - Rapper Wiz KhalifaWiz KhalifaCameron Jibril Thomaz , better known by the stage name Wiz Khalifa , is an American rapper. He released his debut album, Show and Prove, in 2006, and signed to Warner Bros. Records in 2007...
has residence in Hazelwood