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Images courtesy of Archives & Special Collections, University of Pittsburgh Library System
Chief Pontiac
Born around 1720 in an Ottawa village near present-day Detroit, Pontiac became one of the most recognizable Native warriors of early American history. He was an early ally of the French in 1755 at Fort Duquesne, now the site of Pittsburgh, along with an alliance of Ottawas, Ojibwas, Hurons, and Delawares. Pontiac played a major role in the French defeat of English General Edward Braddock in 1755, during the opening battles of what came to be known as the French and Indian War in America.
However, he is most famous for organizing and leading Pontiac's Rebellion against British rule in 1763. Pontiac led the siege of Detroit, one of the last British forts to be assaulted by Native warriors. Although the siege ultimately was broken, Pontiac did wrest concessions from the British, which forced them to revert to many of the earlier trade policies of the French.
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However, he is most famous for organizing and leading Pontiac's Rebellion against British rule in 1763. Pontiac led the siege of Detroit, one of the last British forts to be assaulted by Native warriors. Although the siege ultimately was broken, Pontiac did wrest concessions from the British, which forced them to revert to many of the earlier trade policies of the French.
Books
Colonel Bouquet and Fort Pitt
Colonel Henry Bouquet (c.1719-1765) was a Swiss-born British Army officer. Granted authority in 1756 by the British government to hold a military commission, Bouquet became lieutenant colonel in British North America. He came to Pennsylvania as a principal commander in the 1758 expedition against Fort Duquesne. The site was then occupied by the British, who there constructed a massive structure they named Fort Pitt. Logistics, American Indian diplomacy, and garrison duties absorbed his attention until the outbreak of Pontiac's Rebellion in the early summer of 1763.
Bouquet played a pivotal role in quashing Pontiac’s insurrection among the eastern tribal communities. The 1764 campaign, designed and led by Bouquet, was a complete success, which forced Ohioan villagers to sue for peace. He died at Pensacola on August 25, 1765, the day after arriving in Florida to take up his new post.
Bouquet played a pivotal role in quashing Pontiac’s insurrection among the eastern tribal communities. The 1764 campaign, designed and led by Bouquet, was a complete success, which forced Ohioan villagers to sue for peace. He died at Pensacola on August 25, 1765, the day after arriving in Florida to take up his new post.
French and Indian War
The final intercolonial war between France and Great Britain, the French and Indian War (1754–1763) took place in the Ohio River Valley, an area that had become increasingly important as European interests began to reach west beyond the Appalachians.
The French, who sought a corridor of trade to connect the Mississippi River and Louisiana with their outposts on the Great Lakes and beyond, built a series of forts in the Ohio Valley, the most important being Fort Duquesne (Pittsburgh). At the same time, the British crown, with a continuing eye toward colonization, had offered large land grants there for settlement. Under the circumstances, it was inevitable that the two powers would collide.
The Treaty of Paris (1763) officially ended the intercolonial wars between England and France. The conclusion of the French and Indian War was a watershed event that marked the end of French power in North America. As a result of the treaty, England acquired Canada and all of Spanish Florida. For the next two decades, England would be the sole, dominant power in North America.
The French, who sought a corridor of trade to connect the Mississippi River and Louisiana with their outposts on the Great Lakes and beyond, built a series of forts in the Ohio Valley, the most important being Fort Duquesne (Pittsburgh). At the same time, the British crown, with a continuing eye toward colonization, had offered large land grants there for settlement. Under the circumstances, it was inevitable that the two powers would collide.
The Treaty of Paris (1763) officially ended the intercolonial wars between England and France. The conclusion of the French and Indian War was a watershed event that marked the end of French power in North America. As a result of the treaty, England acquired Canada and all of Spanish Florida. For the next two decades, England would be the sole, dominant power in North America.
Queen Aliquippa
Native Peoples
Since prehistoric times the Ohio River and its tributaries have served as a major conduit for human migration, linking the Atlantic seaboard and Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi valley. Human occupation in the Ohio valley began over sixteen thousand years ago, and the region was home to a series of cultures… The middle Woodland Hopewell culture, centered in southern Ohio and characterized by earthworks, elaborate burial practices, and long-distance trade, is notable, as is the Fort Ancient culture (1400–1600), located in southern Ohio, northern Kentucky, and eastern Indiana. The valley was occupied by a number of protohistoric and historic Native American societies… The Native American societies included the Iroquois (especially Seneca, Erie [to 1656], and Mingo) in western Pennsylvania; the Delaware and Seneca in southern Pennsylvania and West Virginia; and the Delaware, Miami, Ottawa, Shawnee, Seneca, and Wyandot in Ohio. The Ohio takes it name from the Iroquois language and means "Great River.”
UPMC Unfair Labor Practices/Tax Loopholes
UPMC is frequently criticized for paying less than its fair share in taxes, as currently 86% of its property (worth $1.6 billion and occupying 656 acres) is tax exempt due to UPMC’s nonprofit status. If UPMC were not a nonprofit, according to the Post-Gazette, it would owe the City of Pittsburgh more than $20 million in taxes each year, which is income that would make a huge impact on the city.
