Lumberman Way

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Lumberman Way
Neighborhood Troy Hill
Origin of name John McQuewan, lumber merchant
Fate Vacated in 1951
Lumber Alley (ca. 1852)
Origin of name John McQuewan, lumber merchant
Lumberman Alley (until 1914)
Origin of name John McQuewan, lumber merchant

This alley formerly ran from River Avenue to the tracks of the Western Pennsylvania Railroad (today Norfolk Southern), roughly in line with 23rd Street across the Allegheny River. It appears as Lumber Alley in the 1852 map of R. E. McGowin, along the southwest property line of John McQuewan.[1] Notices of sheriff's sales from the 1850s refer to it as Lumberman's Alley.[2][3][4] McQuewan was a lumber merchant whose main lumberyard was on Penn Avenue near the Point.[5][6]:15 It is possible that he also sold lumber at this location on the north side of the Allegheny, or perhaps the alley was simply named for McQuewan himself, "the lumberman."

By 1872, the former McQuewan property had become the lumberyard of Walter & Son.[6]:96 The 1882 Hopkins atlas labels the alley Lumberman Alley.[7] It became Lumberman Way in 1914 when a Pittsburgh city ordinance changed all alleys to ways.[8]

Lumberman Way was vacated in 1951 after a petition to City Council by the H. J. Heinz Company.[9] Today the former Lumberman Way lies beneath a building of the Heinz complex.

Bob Regan includes "Lumberman" in his "Streets of Pittsburgh" crossword puzzle, clued as "A person who sells lumber."[10] Unfortunately this is just a dictionary definition of the word lumberman and gives no particular information about the street name.

See also

  • Second Street, built through the lumberyard of McQuewan and Douglass in 1875
  • 22nd Street, originally named Lumber Street

References

  1. R. E. McGowin. Map of the Cities of Pittsburgh and Allegheny and of the Boroughs of South-Pittsburgh, Birmingham, East-Birmingham, Lawrenceville, Duquesne & Manchester etc. Schuchman & Haunlein, Pittsburgh, 1852. https://collections.lib.uwm.edu/digital/collection/agdm/id/32269/. [view source]mcgowin-1852
  2. "Sheriff's sales." Daily Pittsburgh Gazette, Nov. 5, 1853, [pp. 1–2]. Newspapers.com 85638935, 85638938. [view source]sheriffs-sales-1853-11-05
  3. "Sheriff's sales." Daily Pittsburgh Gazette, Mar. 31, 1855, [pp. 1–2]. Newspapers.com 86447613, 86447621. [view source]sheriffs-sales-1855-03-31
  4. "Sheriff's sales." Daily Morning Post (Pittsburgh), Nov. 3, 1855, [p. 3]. Newspapers.com 88183935. [view source]sheriffs-sales-1855-11-03
  5. Samuel Fahnestock. Fahnestock's Pittsburgh Directory for 1850: Containing the names of the inhabitants of Pittsburgh, Allegheny, & vicinity, their occupation, places of business and dwelling houses; also, a list of the public offices, banks, &c. Geo. Parkin & Co., Pittsburgh, 1850, p. 65. Historic Pittsburgh 31735055723096; Internet Archive fahnestockspitts00unse; LCCN ltf91000003. [view source]fahnestock
  6. 6.0 6.1 Atlas of the Cities of Pittsburgh, Allegheny, and the Adjoining Boroughs. 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
  7. Atlas of the Cities Pittsburgh and Allegheny, plate 32. 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 changing the name 'Alley' on every thoroughfare in the City of Pittsburgh, to 'Way.'" Pittsburgh city ordinance, 1914, no. 402. Passed Nov. 10, 1914; approved Nov. 16, 1914. Ordinance Book 26, p. 360. Reprinted in the Pittsburgh Post, Nov. 23, 1914, p. 11 (Newspapers.com 86505785), and Nov. 24, p. 12 (Newspapers.com 86505809). [view source]ordinance-1914-402
  9. "An ordinance vacating Lumberman way from River avenue to Pennsylvania Railroad right-of-way, abandoning a certain sewer located on Lumberman way between said points and providing certain terms and conditions." Pittsburgh city ordinance, 1951, no. 350. Passed July 3, 1951; approved July 6, 1951. Ordinance Book 57, p. 396. In Municipal Record: Minutes of the proceedings of the Council of the City of Pittsburgh: For the year 1951, appendix, p. 221, City Printing Company, Pittsburgh (Internet Archive Pghmunicipalrecord1951). [view source]ordinance-1951-350
  10. Bob Regan. The Names of Pittsburgh: How the city, neighborhoods, streets, parks and more got their names, pp. 183–186. The Local History Company, Pittsburgh, 2009, ISBN 978-0-9770429-7-5. [view source]regan