Pittsburgh is full of Black history. To explore the city’s significant impact on African-American history, and the growth of the region’s Black community, start with these cultural landmarks. Each site offers a place for visitors to learn about the vibrancy of Pittsburgh’s Black community of the past and today.
National Negro Opera Company, 7101 Apple St., Homewood
Mary Cardwell Dawson opened the first permanent African-American opera company — the National Negro Opera Company — in 1941. The house was also a destination for Black celebrities such as Roberto Clemente, Roy Jefferson, John Nesby, Marvin Woodson and Lena Horne.
August Wilson House, 1727 Bedford Ave., Hill District
Childhood home to the famous playwright August Wilson, this historic house is celebrated as a memorable literary landmark. Wilson’s work focuses heavily on African-American life in the Hill District, and in 1987, his play “Fences” won a Pulitzer Prize for Drama and a Tony Award for Best Play. His significant impact on literature draws many people to visit his childhood home, which has been restored as a community hub.
Freedom Corner, Crawford Street, Hill District
In the 1950s, the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh planned to create middle-income housing in the Middle and Upper Hill. Worried that more homes and businesses would be demolished in the area, the Black community protested at this corner. Freedom Corner now hosts rallies, protests and parades, and symbolizes the center of the Black community’s resilience.
Crawford Grill No. 2, 2141 Wylie Ave., Hill District
This restaurant opened in 1943 and became a prominent hub for Black social life and jazz in the Hill District. Renowned jazz musicians played here, such as Dizzy Gillespie, Walt Harper and Art Blakey. Though the restaurant shut down in 2003, it greatly impacted African-American history and entertainment in the city and nationwide.
Greenlee Field, Bedford Avenue, Hill District
Greenlee Field is recognized as the first African-American-owned stadium in the Negro Leagues from 1932 to 1938 (although the Central Amusement Park, opened by Alexander McDonald Williams in 1924, may have been the country’s real first Black-owned pro sports stadium). In 2009, the Heinz History Center, Josh Gibson Foundation and Society for American Baseball Research lobbied to get a Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission marker placed on Bedford Avenue near the former Greenlee Field site.
Brown Chapel AME Church, 1400 Boyle St., North Side
Organized in 1837-1838, this church became the second AME congregation in West Allegheny, connecting the Black community in the North Side. The Brown Chapel reflects the early community-building skills of the Black community in North Side and Pittsburgh overall.
Bigham House, 655 Pennridge Road, Mt. Washington
Built in 1849, the Bigham House was a well-known stop on the Underground Railroad network. The original owner was attorney and newspaper publisher Thomas Bigham, an abolitionist who was a member of Pennsylvania’s House of Representatives from 1845 to 1864 and a state senator from 1865 to 1867. His family owned the house until 1931, when it was bought by the Buhl Foundation and incorporated into the Chatham Village community. It now operates as a social hall and clubhouse.