HISTORY. As early as 1730 the confluence of the Allegheny and the IS.lonongabela rivers be came a centre of trading operations with the Indians. France and England were rival claim ants to the region, and on the English side both Pennsylvania and Virginia asserted jurisdiction. MIHe on his mission to warn the French away from the Allegheny Valley, Washington visited the site of Pittsburg in November, 1753. He wrote in his journal: "1 spent some time in view ing the rivers and the land in the forks, which I think extremely well situated for a fort, as it has absolute command of both rivers." In the interest of the Ohio Company (q.v.), Captain Trent, with a few Virginia militia, began to build a fort at this place, in February, 1754. On April 17th a force of 700 French and Canadians forced the Virginians to leave. The works were completed and enlarged by the French and named Fort Duquesne. In an effort to retake the place a strong British expedition under General Braddock met disastrous defeat at the hands of the French and Indians, eight miles from Fort Duquesne, on July 9, 1755. In 1758 General Forbes, moving from Philadelphia, led an army of 7500 against Fort Duquesne. A party of 800, under Major James Grant, attempted to surprise the fort on the morning of September 14th, but was overwhelmed and routed. The site of this defeat is a hill in the business centre of the city, now occupied by the Court House and the Frick Building. Forbes by November 24th was within fifteen miles of Fort Duquesne. The French then burned the fort and tied. Forbes occupied the place on November 25th and named it "Pittsburgh," in honor of England's Prime Minister. A small garrison remained over win ter, and in 1759 General Stanwix constructed Fort Pitt. During Pontiae's war in 1763 the fort was vigorously besieged by the Indians from June 27th to August 6th. Col. Henry Bouquet, with 500 British regulars, marched from Car lisle to the relief of the fort, defeated the Indians at Bushy Run, 30 miles east of Pittsburg, after a two days' fight, and reached the fort on August 9th. In 1764 Bouquet erected a brick house a short distance from the fort, and this is the only structure of colonial times remaining at Pittsburg. It is owned and preserved by the Daughters of the American Revolution.
In 1768 John Campbell laid out a small plan of lots near the fort, whereon cabins were erected by sufferance of the fort's commander. The title to the country surrounding Pittsburg was bought from the Iroquois in 1768, and in April, 1769, the Penns opened a land office, but sold nothing within the manor of Pittsburg. Titles under Pennsylvania were not popular, but a strong emi gration set in from Virginia. Washington, on a journey down the Ohio River to seek bounty lands for his soldiers, visited Pittsburg in Octo ber. 1770. He then wrote: ''The houses, which
are built of logs, and ranged in streets, are on the Monongahela. and 1 suppose may he about twenty in number and inhabited by Indian trad ers." In 1772 Fort Pitt was evacuated by the British. but two years later it was occupied by Virginia militia and Virginia authority was established. Virginia courts were held in Pitts burg in 1775-76 and Virginia governed the coun try until the boundary dispute was adjusted in 1781. During the Revolution Fort Pitt was garrisoned by Continental troops, who were oc cupied in frequent excursions against the In dians. The Penns began the sale of lots in the manor of Pittsburg, in 1784. in which year Ar thur Lee thus described the place: "Pittsburgh is inhabited almost entirely by Scots and Irish, who live in paltry log houses. There are in the town four attorneys. two doctors, and not a priest of any persuasion, nor church. nor chapel, so that they are likely to be damned without the benefit of clergy. The place, 1 believe. will never be very considerable." Allegheny County was erected in 1788, and the court house was estab lished at Pittsburg. The opening of the North west Territory gave an impetus to trade, but Pittsburg's real growth did not begin until the close of Indian hostilities in 1795. In 1794 Pittsburg look an active part in the Whisky In surrection (q.v.). houses being burned, large meet ings of the disaffected held, and destructive tires, supposedly incendiary. breaking out. so that troops had to be sent here to enforce the law. Pittsburg became a borough in 1794 and a city in 1S16. 1n 1791; its population was but 1400. The making of window glass began in 1796, and 'luring the first ten years of the nineteenth cen tury ship-yards. foundries. the first bank. cotton factories, and shops for metal-working came into eN ktellre. The I 'ell 11SylVa 11 i8 Canal was opened to Pittsburg in l34, and the era of activity and prosperity that followed was only INuporarily checked by the fire of 1S43, which destroyed prop erty valued at $6.000.000. In 1877, during the great railroad strike, property valued at more than 83.000,000 was destroyed by the rioters.
ronsnit: Craig, Olden Time (Pitt-burg, 1816 481 ; Craig, The History of Pittsburg (ib., : Albach, mulls of the ll'r.st (ib., 1856) ; McKnight, Our Western Bordt'r (ib., 1875) Chapman, The French in the Allegheny Valley (Cleveland, 18S7) ; Thurston, Allegheny County's flundoll Years (Pittsburg, I885); Darlington, Fort Pitt and Letters front the Frontier (ib., 1592) Withers, Chronicles of Border Warfare (('incinnati, 1895) ; Frontier Forts of Prnn.syl vant (Harrisburg, 1896) ; Hassler, Old West moreland: .t History of Western Pennsylvania During the Revolution (Pittsburg, 1900).