PITTS'BURG. The metropolis of western Pennsylvania, the second city of the State, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is situ ated at the junction of the Allegheny and :Mo nongahela rivers where they unite to form the Ohio, in latitude 40° 32' north and longitude SO° 2' 38" west (Map: Pennsylvania, It 3). It is 444 miles west of New York, 354 miles west by north of Philadelphia, and -IGS miles east of Chi-ago. These distances are by rail. The mean average temperature is 53° F., the mean for January being 31° and for July. 75°. The altitude at the river level is 703 feet.
Although eleventh in population, according to the census returns. Pittsburg ranks fifth in com mercial and industrial importance among the cities of the United States. This is due to the fact that surrounding the city proper are two other cities—Allegheny and MeKeesport—and about fifty boroughs, at least thirty of the latter, as well as both cities, being closely allied with Pittsburg. and, for all business purposes, portions of it. An act of Legislature, approved in April, 1903, provides a method whereby these munici palities may be combined with Pittsburg. The ultimate aim of the bill is to make the city co extensive with the county, which now has a population of over 800.000. The city proper eon tains 38 wards and has an area of 2S1.39 square miles. The original city oceupied restricted lim its between the Allegheny and Thmoneahela, but absorption of territory lying to the east greatly enlarged its bounds. A number of boroughs on the south side of the :Monongahela River were annexed in 1872, and are now connected with the old city by four free bridges. Several other have been since absorbed. Allegheny, which lie, across the Allegheny River from Pitts burg. is connected with it by numerous toll bridge,.
Pittsburg is the centre of the iron, steel. and glass industries of the United States. It is also the largest shipping point for bituminous coal, upon which its wealth is founded. The Pittsburg coal district, embracing an area of 14,000 square miles, is the richest coal field in the world. It is from the excessive consumption of coal in its mills and furnaces that Pittsburg derives its sobriquet, "The Smoky City." As a manufactur
ing city Pittsburg is best known, and until recent years it possessed all of the unattractive characteristics of such a community. Recently, however, great progxess has been made, and tine streets, splendid boulevards, a system of parks, costly residences, and other evidences of mu nicipal and civic pride have ve come into existence. In the older portion of the city the streets are narrow, ill arranged, and much congested, owing to the restrictive limits placed upon the district by the rivers. The chief retail streets arc• Fifth Avenue. Sixth, Wood, and Smithfield streets. Lower Liberty and Penn avenues are largely devoted to wholesale houses. Fourth Avenue is the local Wall Street, and here, as o? other principal thoroughfares, are many splendid build ings. The residential portions of the city. being of recent development and less confined by nat ural boundaries, have wide, well-shaded streets, arranged with some regard for system. The most costly residences are in the Bellefield, Shadyside, East Liberty, and Squirrel Hill dis trict-. Among the finer streets are portions of Fifth and Penn avenues, the chief thoroughfares between the downtown and East End districts; North Highland, Ellsworth, and Center avenues.
The city has about 450 miles of streets, of which 256 miles are paved. principally with asphalt or block stone. There are 323 miles of sewers, including 45 miles of brick. All the streets are covered by city water mains, save those on the South Side, which is supplied by a private company. Natural and artificial gas is piped to all parts of the city. For a decade previous to 1895 natural gas was the principal fuel in the mills and factories. but, owing to a decrease in the supply, the larger factories have ve been forced to resume the use of coal. Natural gas still forms the favorite fuel for domestic purposes. An extensive system of street rail ways, operated by electricity, connects the city with the surrounding towns. All the lines in Pittsburg and Allegheny and many of those reaehing to the boroughs have been consolidated under one management.