Zach Brodt
@zbarchivist.bsky.social
Pittsburgh archivist and historian of 19th c. US. Author - From the Steel City to the White City: Western Pennsylvania & the World’s Columbian Exposition. | zachbrodt.wordpress.com
If the sections of the bookstore are labeled like this you know it will be a good one
July 24, 2025 at 10:53 PM
If the sections of the bookstore are labeled like this you know it will be a good one
If you’re in town on May 31 we’d love to see you at the Greater Pittsburgh Festival of Books at the Carnegie Library where I’ll be moderating a panel on Pittsburgh history with Ed Simon and Jan Ellen Kurth at 11:30. Always a great time with plenty to see and do!
May 17, 2025 at 5:05 PM
If you’re in town on May 31 we’d love to see you at the Greater Pittsburgh Festival of Books at the Carnegie Library where I’ll be moderating a panel on Pittsburgh history with Ed Simon and Jan Ellen Kurth at 11:30. Always a great time with plenty to see and do!
You could probably teach an entire class on Pennsylvania history based on each section of this gate at the state library
May 3, 2025 at 12:20 PM
You could probably teach an entire class on Pennsylvania history based on each section of this gate at the state library
In John White Alexander’s “The Apotheosis of Pittsburgh” a steel-clad knight represents the city’s rise to economic and cultural glory … and looks suspiciously like Andrew Carnegie. The mural is in the Carnegie Institute after all. 🗃️
January 4, 2025 at 12:43 AM
In John White Alexander’s “The Apotheosis of Pittsburgh” a steel-clad knight represents the city’s rise to economic and cultural glory … and looks suspiciously like Andrew Carnegie. The mural is in the Carnegie Institute after all. 🗃️
In 1921 Marie Curie toured the US and delegations would gift her money needed to buy more uranium for her research. This is the thank you note she sent to the University of Pittsburgh for their contribution. She was also awarded an honorary degree. #history
December 21, 2024 at 3:37 PM
In 1921 Marie Curie toured the US and delegations would gift her money needed to buy more uranium for her research. This is the thank you note she sent to the University of Pittsburgh for their contribution. She was also awarded an honorary degree. #history
War production was a big part of early 1940s labor in Western PA. This sign hung in the Duquesne Works to discourage absenteeism among the steelworkers #history
December 15, 2024 at 6:19 PM
War production was a big part of early 1940s labor in Western PA. This sign hung in the Duquesne Works to discourage absenteeism among the steelworkers #history
Western Pennsylvania and medical innovation have a long history, most notably the development of the polio vaccine. Salk and his team get the credit but thousands of local families volunteered for the early vaccine trials. That research is now at the University of Pittsburgh archives
December 2, 2024 at 6:25 PM
Western Pennsylvania and medical innovation have a long history, most notably the development of the polio vaccine. Salk and his team get the credit but thousands of local families volunteered for the early vaccine trials. That research is now at the University of Pittsburgh archives
10,000s of Thanksgiving travelers will use the PA Turnpike to visit their families, but in the mid-1800s they would use the Pennsylvania Main Line Canal. The boats would be placed on special cars and lifted over the mountains using the Allegheny Portage Railroad. Portions like this remain today
November 27, 2024 at 1:54 PM
10,000s of Thanksgiving travelers will use the PA Turnpike to visit their families, but in the mid-1800s they would use the Pennsylvania Main Line Canal. The boats would be placed on special cars and lifted over the mountains using the Allegheny Portage Railroad. Portions like this remain today
Book curse written by an eastern Pennsylvania farmer’s son (my wife’s great grandfather) c.1900
November 25, 2024 at 12:25 PM
Book curse written by an eastern Pennsylvania farmer’s son (my wife’s great grandfather) c.1900
The Pennsylvania State Museum has a great model of a blast furnace that explains all the inner workings
November 16, 2024 at 12:38 AM
The Pennsylvania State Museum has a great model of a blast furnace that explains all the inner workings
In July I was part of the team that hosted an @nehgov.bsky.social workshop for K-12 teachers about the 1892 Homestead Steel Strike. One of our field trips was to the Carrie Furnace, which provided pig iron for the mill
November 16, 2024 at 12:33 AM
In July I was part of the team that hosted an @nehgov.bsky.social workshop for K-12 teachers about the 1892 Homestead Steel Strike. One of our field trips was to the Carrie Furnace, which provided pig iron for the mill
This summer I had the chance to check out the iron furnace in Boiling Springs PA. I was curious about how it worked and recently came across this helpful graphic the Heritage Discovery Center in Johnstown
November 16, 2024 at 12:28 AM
This summer I had the chance to check out the iron furnace in Boiling Springs PA. I was curious about how it worked and recently came across this helpful graphic the Heritage Discovery Center in Johnstown