General History
When the first Europeans (namely the French trapper LaSalle in 1669) came to the Monongahela and Allegheny River Valley the land was partially occupied by nomadic Native Americans whose settlements were near where the three rivers met. They were chiefly Allegawis, Adena, Hopewell, Delaware, Seneca, Shawnee, and several settled groups of Iroquois called "Mingoes." They primarily hunted, fished and traded in this region that primarily remained a pass-through on people's journeys.

The Monongahela River from the south and the Allegheny River from the north join to form the Ohio that goes to the West.  The place where the rivers meet--their confluence--has a rich history pre-dating the Native American nomadic way of life. Most notable for its role in the French and Indian War when it served the French as Fort Duquesne from 1754-1758. The French, realizing their hold could not last against the 6,000 troops of General John Forbes, abandoned their site two days before the British arrived and constructed Fort Pitt. The Fort Pitt Museum and other original structures are still in place in the area as well as many interpretive and informational signs. It's truly an urban treasure where you can experience the three rivers, the natural setting, strolling paths, outdoor concerts and festivals and powerful history.   For these reasons, this "Point" where the three rivers meet was designated a state park-- Point State Park -- by Pennsylvania's Department of Conservation and Natural Resources around 1964 and is a registered National Historic Landmark.

More than 250 years after a young George Washington nearly drown in the icy waters of the Allegheny River and General Forbes finally assigned the named "Pittsbourgh" to the area, Pittsburgh is now known as the " City of Bridges " because of our unique waterlogged geography and necessity to conquer it.  The metropolitan region boasts over 2000 bridges that span 8 feet or greater. Pittsburgh is second in number of bridges only to Venice, Italy.  

Many of the nations most prominent corporations and business have made their homes along the banks of the three rivers for reasons of efficiency, convenience or aesthetics; Alcoa, Heinz, Del Monte and Seagate along the Allegheny River; Parkhurst Inc. (Eat & Park); US Steel, Siemens Westinghouse, RedZone Robotics, US Switch & Signal, REI, and the FBI are all helping to restore what once were the brownfields along the Monongahela River; the corridors along the Ohio are still primarily used by the rail industry but our hope is that with further persistence and cooperation, trail groups and local businesses will gain permission from the railroads to develop economically sustainable and environmentally regenerated areas along the Ohio.

Along the banks of the Allegheny near the Strip District in Pittsburgh sits the new David L. Lawrence Convention Center. With 330,000 square feet of conference space, this building is the first convention center to be certified 'green' in the US, using features such as natural ventilation, natural daylighting, water conservation and energy efficient building technology. This is just one example of how Pittsburgh's way of thinking about its rivers, riverfronts and environment has changed since the "Smoky City" days of our Steel Heritage. That was then ; this is now.