College Street

From Pittsburgh Streets
College Street
Neighborhood Shadyside
Origin of name Pennsylvania Female College, today Chatham University
➤
Spahr Street (until 1873)
Origin of name Spahr family
➤
College Avenue (1873–1881)
Origin of name Pennsylvania Female College, today Chatham University

College Street is named for the Pennsylvania Female College, today Chatham University, which was founded on the hill above the top of this street in 1869.[1][a]

There has historically been some confusion about the name of this street: is it College Street or College Avenue?

This street appears, unlabeled, in the 1872 Hopkins atlas. It ran from Fifth Avenue to the current intersection of College Street and Spahr Street, where it made an angle to follow the course of Spahr Street to Ellsworth Avenue. It then crossed the Pennsylvania Railroad and continued to Centre Avenue. In fact, the map shows the street continuing past Centre Avenue to meet another unlabeled street corresponding to modern Coral Street.[3]

The whole of this street from Fifth to Ellsworth seems to have originally been named Spahr Street, named for the Spahr family who owned land on the street south of Ellsworth: L. Spahr, E. Spahr, and Dr. J. Spahr.[3] An 1873 ordinance changed the name of Spahr Street to College Avenue,[4] and this was the name by which it was opened two months later.[5]

However, an 1881 ordinance establishing the names of all streets in Pittsburgh listed "College street, from Fifth avenue to Centre avenue, Twentieth ward."[6] By this time College Street had been extended in a straight line to Centre Avenue, and today's Spahr Street had reverted to its original name.[6][7] The name College Street was reconfirmed by a 1910 ordinance.[8]

Nevertheless, the name College Avenue remained in common use: for example, the Hopkins maps of 1882, 1890, 1904, and 1910 all label it "College Ave."[7][9][10][11] The 1923 Hopkins atlas changed the label to "College St."[12]

In 1989, when the city replaced old black-and-white street signs with new blue-and-white ones, residents of the street complained that the new signs said "College St" instead of "College Ave."[13] But it seems that this has been the official name of the street since 1881. All current street signs say "College St," but some street signs read "College Ave" as late as August 2015.[14][15][16]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Bob Regan includes "College" in a list of streets with "college-related names,"[2] which is true, of course, but a rather meaningless tautology.

References

  1. ↑ Laberta Dysart. Chatham College: The first ninety years. Chatham College, Pittsburgh, 1959. Internet Archive chathamcollegefi00dysa. [view source] chatham-college
  2. ↑ Bob Regan. The Names of Pittsburgh: How the city, neighborhoods, streets, parks and more got their names, p. 66. The Local History Company, Pittsburgh, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9770429-7-5. [view source] regan
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Atlas of the Cities of Pittsburgh, Allegheny, and the Adjoining Boroughs, p. 63. G. M. Hopkins & Co., Philadelphia, 1872. http://historicpittsburgh.org/maps-hopkins/1872-atlas-pittsburgh-allegheny; 1872 layer at Pittsburgh Historic Maps (https://esriurl.com/pittsburgh). [view source] hopkins-1872
  4. ↑ "An ordinance changing the Name of Spahr street and ⸻ street to College avenue." Pittsburgh city ordinance, 1873, no. 78. Passed May 12, 1873. Ordinance Book 3, p. 363. In The Municipal Record: Containing the proceedings of the Select and Common Councils of the City of Pittsburgh, together with the ordinances, &c.: With an index, vol. IV, p. 64, Pittsburgh Daily Gazette, Pittsburgh, 1872 (Internet Archive pghmunicipalrecord1872). [view source] ordinance-1873-78
  5. ↑ "An ordinance authorizing the opening of College avenue, from Fifth avenue to Ellsworth avenue." Pittsburgh city ordinance, 1873, no. 177. Passed July 14, 1873. Ordinance Book 3, p. 22. In The Municipal Record: Containing the proceedings of the Select and Common Councils of the City of Pittsburgh, together with the ordinances, &c.: With an index, vol. IV, p. 87, Pittsburgh Daily Gazette, Pittsburgh, 1872 (Internet Archive pghmunicipalrecord1872). [view source] ordinance-1873-177
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "An ordinance establishing the names of avenues, streets, lanes and alleys of the City of Pittsburgh." Pittsburgh city ordinance, 1881, no. 33. Passed Feb. 28, 1881; approved Mar. 4, 1881. Ordinance Book 5, p. 212. In Municipal Record: Minutes of the proceedings of the Select and Common Councils of the City of Pittsburgh, for the year 1880, pp. 213–234 (Internet Archive pghmunicipalrecord1880). [view source] ordinance-1881-33
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Atlas of the Cities Pittsburgh and Allegheny, plate 18. G. M. Hopkins & Co., Philadelphia, 1882. http://historicpittsburgh.org/maps-hopkins/1882-atlas-pittsburgh-allegheny; 1882 layer at Pittsburgh Historic Maps (https://esriurl.com/pittsburgh). [view source] hopkins-1882
  8. ↑ "An ordinance establishing the names of the avenues, streets, lanes and alleys in the City of Pittsburgh." Pittsburgh city ordinance, 1910, no. 716. Passed Mar. 31, 1910; approved Apr. 5, 1910. Ordinance Book 21, p. 359. In Municipal Record: Minutes of the proceedings of the [Select and Common Councils] of the City of Pittsburgh for the years 1909–1910, appendix, pp. 328–381, Devine & Co., Pittsburgh, 1910 (Google Books doQzAQAAMAAJ; HathiTrust uiug.30112108223832; Internet Archive Pghmunicipalrecord1909). Reprinted in the Pittsburgh Post, Apr. 29, 1910, pp. 12–16 (Newspapers.com 86616256, 86616285, 86616314, 86616333, 86616343), and Apr. 30, pp. 12–16 (Newspapers.com 86616643, 86616672, 86616694, 86616726, 86616748). [view source] ordinance-1910-716
  9. ↑ Atlas of the City of Pittsburgh, vol. 4. G. M. Hopkins & Co., Philadelphia, 1890. http://historicpittsburgh.org/maps-hopkins/1890-volume-4-atlas-pittsburgh; included in the 1890 layer at Pittsburgh Historic Maps (https://esriurl.com/pittsburgh). [view source] hopkins-1890-vol-4
  10. ↑ Real Estate Plat-Book of the City of Pittsburgh, vol. 2, plates 3, 4. G. M. Hopkins & Co., Philadelphia, 1904. http://historicpittsburgh.org/maps-hopkins/1904-volume-2-plat-book-pittsburgh; included in the 1903–1906 layer at Pittsburgh Historic Maps (https://esriurl.com/pittsburgh). [view source] hopkins-1904-vol-2
  11. ↑ Atlas of Greater Pittsburgh, plates 15, 16. G. M. Hopkins & Co., Philadelphia, 1910. http://historicpittsburgh.org/maps-hopkins/1910-atlas-greater-pittsburgh; 1910 layer at Pittsburgh Historic Maps (https://esriurl.com/pittsburgh). [view source] hopkins-1910
  12. ↑ Real Estate Plat-Book of the City of Pittsburgh, vol. 2, plates 3, 7. G. M. Hopkins & Co., Philadelphia, 1923. http://historicpittsburgh.org/maps-hopkins/1923-volume-2-plat-book-pittsburgh-east-end-south; included in the 1923 layer at Pittsburgh Historic Maps (https://esriurl.com/pittsburgh). [view source] hopkins-1923-vol-2
  13. ↑ Mary Pat Flaherty. "What's in a name? Grief when city changes street signs." Pittsburgh Press, Aug. 30, 1989, pp. A1, A4. Newspapers.com 145796154, 145796313. [view source] flaherty
  14. ↑ Street view, College Ave at Holden St. Google Maps, Aug. 2015. https://goo.gl/maps/8yFgyEdLM6iJUH52A. [view source] street-view-college-holden
  15. ↑ Street view, College Ave at Elmer St. Google Maps, Aug. 2015. https://goo.gl/maps/LMBx4cgXAZH1hReJ8. [view source] street-view-college-elmer
  16. ↑ Street view, College Ave at Spahr St. Google Maps, Aug. 2015. https://goo.gl/maps/FPBrZxPfsRc7s3WN6. [view source] street-view-college-spahr
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