A very astute reader has pointed out something extremely interesting to me.
You know that whole "Pittsburgh is hell with the lid take off" quote? People use it all the time to describe the nefarious environmental impact of Big Steel. Me included. Never mind that its from 1866, long before Andrew Carnegie had his hand in the mix, and quite some time before steel was "big" in the sense we now mean it. After all, it's a great quote.
Well, not so fast. From the reader (The emphasis at the end is mine):
... "hell with the lid taken off" was not meant as an insult. Sounds
nasty? Yes, on its own ... but you writers are always taking poor James
Parton out of context, and maligning my fair city in the process. The
quote was taken from a (long, long) travel essay, and in fact Mr. Parton
rather enjoyed the city, saying it was one of the most beautiful he'd
ever seen, comparable to Niagara Falls and better than New Orleans
(which was just a small port at the time).
In the oft-cited passage, he was talking about the view from what was
then Coal Hill, and is now known as Mt. Washington:
"There is one evening scene in Pittsburg which no visitor should miss.
Owing to the abruptness of the hill behind the town, there is a street
along the edge of the bluff, from which you can look directly down upon
the part of the city which lies low, near the level of the rivers. On
the evening of this dark day, we were conducted to the edge of the
abyss, and looked over the iron railing upon the most striking spectacle we
ever beheld ... It is an unprofitable business, view-hunting; but if
any one would enjoy a spectacle as striking as Niagara, he may do so by
simply walking up a long hill to Cliff Street in Pittsburg, and looking
over into -- hell with the lid taken off."
He's describing the view, molten wreaths of fire, as far as the eye can
see; not the livability of the city, the cuisine, the people, or
anything else. "Here," he wrote, "all is curious and wonderful; site,
environs, history, geology, business, aspect, atmosphere, customs, everything
... To know Pittsburg thoroughly is a liberal education in the kind of
culture demanded by modern times." It was practically a love letter to
the city, yet that damned "hell with the lid taken off" line is all
that survives.
P.S. My slogan idea --
Pittsburgh: Hell With the Lid More or Less On.
In the future, I will continue to use the whole "hell/lid" quote. Mr. Parton does speak very colorfully in that regard, after all. But I will also endeavor to use the section emphasized above, for it balances things out a bit, no?
The reader was also kind enough to provide a link to the full text of the travelogue. It's awesome. Read it.
I did. And it put me in mind of some more moronic musings. But that's for later. For now, consider me repentant of my misquoting ways regarding Mr. Parton.
And thanks to the reader.
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