{"id":364,"date":"2014-08-13T02:00:40","date_gmt":"2014-08-13T02:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/?p=364"},"modified":"2015-01-09T16:18:06","modified_gmt":"2015-01-09T21:18:06","slug":"market-square-pittsburghs-original-gathering-space","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2014\/08\/13\/market-square-pittsburghs-original-gathering-space\/","title":{"rendered":"Market Square: Pittsburgh\u2019s original gathering space"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"1790s: <\/a>
1790s: The old courthouse and market, which opened in 1794 and were taken down in 1852. (Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania) <\/div> <\/div>
\"September <\/a>
September 1946: Pittsburgh’s Diamond Market House. (Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div>
\"October <\/a>
October 7, 1961: Pittsburgh’s Diamond Market House. (Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"February <\/a>
February 21, 1961: A proposed model for a shopping and entertainment area designed for Market Square. (George Bower\/Post-Gazette) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"October <\/a>
October 29, 1977: The Hartzell Memorial Fountain, which was removed in 1990. (Ed Morgan\/Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"September <\/a>
September 9, 1980: Overhead view of Market Square. (Andy Starnes\/Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div>
\"April <\/a>
April 9, 1990: Market Square as it stood in 1990 with Forbes Avenue running left to right through the center of the photo. (Susie Post\/Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

You might think of Pittsburgh\u2019s Market Square as a gathering place for businessmen and women navigating the daily lunchtime rush, as a home to cooing pigeons snacking on crumbs or even as an unintentional ice skating rink in winter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

While Market Square might not look the same as when it was first constructed, one thing stayed the same: it has remained Pittsburgh\u2019s restless epicenter.<\/p>\n

The conception of Market Square dates back to 1784 when Philadelphia surveyors George Woods and Thomas Vickroy sought to create a central location for the city of Pittsburgh. It was originally known as the \u201cDiamond,\u201d a name typical for 18th and 19th century Pennsylvania town centers. Within the Diamond, the original Market House was built around 1794.<\/p>\n

According to a 1982 edition of the Pittsburgh Press, the Market was replaced in 1853 by a building that \u201cserved as Pittsburgh\u2019s City Hall, as an armory for the 17th Pennsylvania Regiment and briefly as a hospice for Civil War Soldiers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moving into the early 20th century, the Diamond Market was constructed to take up all four quadrants of the Diamond Street-Market Street intersection. The Market House, as it was known, provided Pittsburghers with a lively grocer, florist and baker scene.<\/p>\n

The building stood until October 1961, when it was razed to make room for grass, benches, and walkways. Four large grass quadrants were carved from Forbes and Market Street, which ran through the square.<\/p>\n

Market Square gained another addition in 1977 \u2014 the granite Hartzell Memorial Fountain, constructed in 1909. Inscribed with the words, \u201cFor Man, Beast and Bird,\u201d it stood in the square until 1990 and was used as a birdbath, public water fountain and sometimes a place for the homeless to wash up.<\/p>\n

Much of what we see today in Market Square was constructed throughout the 1980s. Most notably, Pittsburgh\u2019s iconic PPG tower was built with five surrounding buildings in 1984.<\/p>\n

Today, the grass quadrants are paved over and seating accommodations fill what Pittsburghers think of as a reliable Downtown hangout spot.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The area has remained Pittsburgh\u2019s restless epicenter.<\/p>\n

Look at the picturesMarket Square: Pittsburgh\u2019s original gathering space<\/span><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":371,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[945],"tags":[972,1110,1215,994,1003,1216],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/tumblr_na7pdb9XsD1rr5swxo6_r1_1280.jpg?fit=1280%2C799&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9872,"url":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2021\/01\/31\/historical-panoramics\/","url_meta":{"origin":364,"position":0},"title":"Historical Panoramics","date":"January 31, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Post-Gazette artists and photographers have spent months digging for historic images of Pittsburgh landmarks -- Market Square, the Block House at the Point, Forbes Field and Luna Park. We found great panoramic views of Forbes Field and Luna Park, but not of Market Square and The Block House. We wanted\u2026","rel":"","context":"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/LunaParkThen.jpg?fit=1200%2C489&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":640,"url":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2014\/05\/21\/1974-same-sex-couples-fight-for-their-right-to-marry\/","url_meta":{"origin":364,"position":1},"title":"1974: Same-sex couples fight for their right to marry","date":"May 21, 2014","format":"gallery","excerpt":"For a long time, nothing happened.","rel":"","context":"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/tumblr_n5w4gk1NKG1rr5swxo8_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C925&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1669,"url":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2013\/06\/21\/the-bank-tower-in-pittsburgh\/","url_meta":{"origin":364,"position":2},"title":"The Bank Tower in Pittsburgh","date":"June 21, 2013","format":"gallery","excerpt":"As developers invest in historic buildings or build new office towers, Downtown Pittsburgh grows more vibrant.","rel":"","context":"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/tumblr_mopk80CMUM1rr5swxo5_1280.jpg?fit=806%2C1008&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":625,"url":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2014\/05\/28\/groundbreaking-ceremony-for-mellon-square\/","url_meta":{"origin":364,"position":3},"title":"Groundbreaking ceremony for Mellon Square","date":"May 28, 2014","format":"gallery","excerpt":"Mellon Square has anchored Pittsburgh\u2019s business district since 1955 and hid behind its aesthetic shield one of the largest parking lots in the center of the city.","rel":"","context":"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/tumblr_n68wkxY7mo1rr5swxo2_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C924&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4944,"url":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2015\/02\/04\/the-construction-of-pittsburghs-downtown-subway\/","url_meta":{"origin":364,"position":4},"title":"The construction of Pittsburgh’s Downtown subway","date":"February 4, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The T was 75 years in the making, and while it still doesn't go as far as many Pittsburghers would like, it did help improve the city's 20th century Downtown traffic headaches.","rel":"","context":"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/Pittsburgh-subway-construction-013.jpg?fit=814%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":493,"url":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2014\/07\/07\/the-t-j-keenan-building\/","url_meta":{"origin":364,"position":5},"title":"The T.J. 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