Making History Blog
From Cucina to Grocery Store: The Evolution of Pasta-Making in American Homes
A version of this article appeared in the Fall 2014 issue of Western Pennsylvania History magazine. October 25 is World Pasta Day For many people, Italian American culture is…
Isaly’s: A Recipe for Good Food
Canonsburg Isaly’s storefront sign at night, c. 1950. Author collection. Isaly’s price list, c. 1950. Author collection. As I prepare my second book on Isaly’s, I’m often asked…
The Incredible Journey of the Steamboat New Orleans
Folk painting of the steamboat New Orleans, c. 1800s. Currently on view in the Pittsburgh: A Tradition of Innovation exhibit. Credit: Senator John Heinz History Center Museum Collection. A…
Quel Mazzolin di Fiori: I Campagnoli and the Italian American Folk Revival
I Campagnoli marching in a parade in downtown Pittsburgh, 1980s. I Campagnoli Papers & Photographs, Detre Library & Archives at the History Center. Gift of Mary Ferro. Musicologist Alan…
“They’re Coming to Get You:” Night of the Living Dead
Still from George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead. From the Leland Hartman Papers and Photographs, MSS 896, Detre Library & Archives at the History Center. The cult classic…
Manufacturing Thrills: The Legacy of Western Pennsylvania’s Roller Coaster Pioneers
Sometimes the research for one story naturally leads into another. While working through collections related to a recent post about lost amusement parks, I came across this great image…
Remembering the Island Queen
The Day Pittsburgh Stood Still: September 9, 1947 It was a such a simple repair. As Captain Charles Hall walked off the Cincinnati-based excursion steamer Island Queen, docked along…
The Fabric of America
Slavery was the root cause of the American Civil War. In fact, the inhumanity of slavery has been the cause of civil strife around the world for millennia. It…
Last Ride of Summer: West View Park and the Nostalgia for Lost Amusement Parks
Beware the Ides of March, a seer warned Julius Caesar. For classic amusement parks, the day of reckoning often occurred in the weeks following Labor Day, when summer’s end…
See the Jeep as a Lady
While guys loved the military jeep they drove in the service, the versatile army workhorse was not practical as a family car. Created of necessity on the eve of…