this breaks my heart to watch..I was born there in 1949 in the old hospital and grew up there when it still had 3 theaters a skating rink and a nightclub called the Lennox where Ella Fitzgerald and Ray Charles appeared ...truly an amazing place then to spend your youth. At 19 I started working as a locomotive fireman on the Monongahela RR located in the train station which was called the Union Station. Up into the 50s there were 100 trains a day thru it...from the city of Fairmont WVa on north to Pittsburgh and beyond...Some of the engineers I worked with had been there since the 1920s and gave me much of the history I now know about the local RR which was a shortline coal feeder from the mines running from WVa to the junctions with the B&O , PR and Lake Eerie RRs just north of town. Many thanks for the video
I’m from here too, but on the outskirts in the country near Grindstone, my mom and dad told me all about that stuff that was down there and when we were teenagers, then we know about the tunnels in the old church we’ve gone into them. They lead to the castle and all the other slave quarters.
I’m from here too, but on the outskirts in the country near Grindstone, my mom and dad told me all about that stuff that was down there and when we were teenagers, then we know about the tunnels in the old church we’ve gone into them. They lead to the castle and all the other slave quarters. And the funny thing is we went to school with Ligget. If you went to Brownsville school, you went to school with a bunch of Leggott. Wonder if they were related and yes, they were some rich motherfuckers.
90% of a major Hollywood movie from 1984 called MARIA’S LOVERS was filmed in Brownsville. Almost all of the locations in this video can be seen in that film (downtown, Market Street, abandoned church, train station, hospital). A painted sign pointing towards the “Maria’s Lovers House” off Market St can be seen at the 13:44 mark here. Much of the movie was shot there and it has been restored. Nastassja Kinski (as Maria), Robert Mitchum, John Savage & many more star in the movie which takes place in 1946 Brownsville. Amazed more people aren’t commenting on it, it is a virtual travelogue of the town.
I grew up just on the other side of the Brownsville tunnel so we went into town a lot. I practically lived in the library including volunteering there as a kid. There was an incredible Italian restaurant in lower Brownsville that we always went to for family birthdays. There was also an arts center where my sister and I went for their art and drama summer camps. And I went on so many tours of Nemacolin Castle (pronounced with an e like in egg) that I practically had the whole tour memorized. I remember when everyone started talking about the guy buying up everything and at first people were so excited. I was confused why he wanted a riverboat casino there since it was already a pretty empty and slow town but I figured I was a kid and the grown-ups knew what they were talking about. I also didn't know just how much of the town he had bought. Then I graduated and moved to Pittsburgh. Any time I would go back the place just looked sadder and sadder. So many gorgeous historical homes falling apart. There was one my mom and I called "our house" because we loved it so much and desperately wanted to fix it up. I hope they can figure out a way to revitalize it.
Next time you're visiting Brownsville, walk up Front Street from Nemacolin Castle. You will think you're in a historic district in Boston or Philly. Beautiful houses, brick sidewalks, stately trees. The residents are really trying to maintain the area.
Thanks for visiting Brownsville. You summed up the history wonderfully. I pastor two of the churches in Brownsville. That is one thing that is still strong in the little area, the ministerial association is vibrant and active. Meaning although the churches you spotted are mostly small congregation wise, they are alive and kicking. We do work together to serve the community with food banks, community events, benevolent funds. While depressed the people do care for their own. If you ever come back into the area and wish to explore the churches please let me know. I’d be happy to help make that happen. Also all the flags were put up by the local rotary club which is also incredibly active. They go up for veterans, Memorial Day, the 4th and a few other national holidays.
You need to make arrangements with someone who knows the local history and go back because there's so much you missed. I was born and raised just up old Rt 40 in Uniontown and actually worked in Brownsville for 3 years at Hillman Barge where we built barges primarily for the coal industry, in the mid 1800's to the early 1900's between Brownsville and California Pa that stretch of the Monongahela River was the epicenter of inland marine construction in the US, you actually walked past a sign for Heartland Fabrication which is what the old Hillman shipyard is called now. I understand that you had no way of knowing but there's so much about the history of that immediate area that's fascinating that you missed, try to get a hold of a local historian, start with their historical center you were at as I'm sure someone from there would be more than glad to take you on a tour of the area and fill you in, make arrangements and go back to make another video, you won't regret it. Edit, here's just one factoid, there was a guy in Brownsville named Henry Miller Shreve who built rafts for floating commerce and agricultural goods down the Monongahela to the Ohio and onward to the Mississippi down to the markets in New Orleans, during the War of 1812 he built the rafts that carried Andrew Jackson and his troops downriver for their attack on the British, he was later contracted by the Army Corps Of Engineer's to clear a 180 mile long log jam on the Red River so it could be used for moving trade goods, the location where a trading post was established grew into a city that eventually bore his name, Shreveport Louisiana. Also, the agricultural goods that eventually would be taken downriver on Shreve's rafts are the primary reason for what started The Whiskey Rebellion after the Revolutionary War. There's a Wikipedia page on Henry Miller Shreve, it's a good place to start doing research on the marine construction trade that the area became the first area it was centered in during the earliest days of US history, from Henry Shreve's rafts to the many famous paddle boats that ran on America's waterways during the western expansion to the 5 largest tow boats in the world at the time that were built in the 70's at Hillman Barge for Exxon Corporation the history of shipbuilding in Brownsville is one that shouldn't be forgotten.
The by-product coking ovens at integrated steel mills is really what spelled the end of "Connellsville Region Coke" (of which Brownsville was part) as long ago as the 1920s. Steel makers could make coke on an industrial scale and save the chemical runoff, something that could not be done with the hundreds of labor intensive "bee hive" ovens lined up in batteries all around the Monongahela and Youghiogheny valleys. 22:39 - Brownsville was also the hometown of the Monongahela Railway (MRY, later MGA), which connected with the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie and Pennsylvania Railroad at Brown Tower. There was a sizeable locomotive shop in town at one time. The Monongahela went as far south as Fairmont, WV and Fairview, WV. MGA was absorbed by Conrail in the early 1990s and today the mainline is operated by Norfolk Southern. MRY 71 is a reminder of those times. As to "why so many churches" it must be remembered that Brownsville was a "whole world of people" at one time, and every group brought with them a particular following of Christianity from the old countries. Add this to the usual mainline protestant denominations and it resulted in a lot of church buildings.
In some cases the remaining residents appear to be blessed with a town so poor there ain't no crack heads all over the place. The town itself and old world architecture are just beautiful and deserve to be restored. Wish I was young enough to make it happen.
I’ve lived in Johnstown for 30 years. Western PA is a great area to explore. We’ve seen tough times here, but we’re on the upswing currently. Downtown is back, good restaurants around town, a cool place to live. Btw,Johnstown, and probably many other small or mid sized towns has churches all over. It’s quite notable. We have Catholic, Ukrainian Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, Serbian Orthodox, Catholic Orthodox, Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, Baptist, Pentecostal, and more! There’s a heavy Eastern European influence, as well as German, Polish, Italian, English, and Scots Irish. Lots of culture and history in Western PA!
I was just in the burgh for a few pirate games & took off on my bike Man the old world buildings / churches are insane downtown I also noticed that city courthouse old jail is just Wow. how the hell did they build these mega structures with only horse & buggy , no power tools and the precision is amazing
I wouldn’t say J-town is on the upswing. I go back to visit my parents several times a year and see the continual decline of the town, more and more homes run down by slum lords, then abandoned and left to rot until the city has to fit the bill to demolish them. Even the suburbs have big decline in school populations.
This is what every small town in New England and upstate NY will look like in 10 years now that all the manufacturing has moved to Mexico , China and India . We are not a country , we are a corporation acting on behalf of the shareholders .
I went to California University about 6 miles away. I worked on the college newspaper . We printed our paper at the Brownsville Telegraph. So i was in Brownsville weekly. It was a pretty grim place in the midd 1980s. I was in town from the fall of 1983 to 1987. Many of those storefronts were boarded up 41 years. It was pretty much a ghost town before the Leggets. The telegraph was by the bridge. Also down by the bridge was Fiddles hot dog shop. We would eat lunch there every Friday while our paper was being printed. Fiddle's was in a movie that was made around the area in 1982. "Maria's Lovers" more was shot across the river in west Brownsville. A professor of mine had a painting that highlighted the churches in town . I think there was 10 or 12 in the painting. "The Town of Churches" I don't think Brownsville was a suburb of Pittsburgh . Not close enough.
I really enjoyed this, Ian. I wanted to add that many different churches allowed immigrants to maintain their cultural and religious beliefs. You walked among Byzantine, Catholic, Orthodox, Methodist, and Presbyterian churches near the old hospital. It was important for people to stay connected to their roots.
Thanks for the video. I was born and raised in a community close to Brownsville. So it is great to see this video. In the 1950s when I was little my family often drove up to the mountains through Brownsville. There was only the Brownsville Bridge as shown often in the video. (The high-level bridge did not exist.) That downtown section you walked in this video was jam-packed with people. Cars would be backed up for blocks. It would take seemingly forever to get through that section in either direction. Brownsville was a bustling town in those days. All of those storefronts that you passed were occupied by successful businesses. Passenger rail service died out a little before my time. Union Station in this building is amazing.
Wow all got to say is wow. Being from Philadelphia, an knowing most of the areas in PA. Never knew about Brownsville. Great looking area it is amazing this could happen in PA. Thanks for making the video.
I grew up about 5 miles away from Brownsville in 1948. Going to Brownsville in those days was like going to Pittsburgh. They had just about everything you would need. They said at one time that Brownsville was going to be bigger than Pittsburg. The first church coming across the new bridge was St Nicholas Greek Catholic Church, where my family belonged.a lot of buildings are gone. I can remember the Plaza movie theater. The Union Station building was across from the flat iron building. I used to go to a dentist’s office there.
When I was a teenager in the late 50's, my uncle was a minister in the Presbyterian Church which was on Market St. The house and church stood right about where the straight part of the exit is parallel to the bridge. You could stand on the front porch and look to the right and see the St. Nicholas Byzantine Catholic Church. The parsonage was a wonderful house. You had to go up to get to the first floor, and it had an oval winding staircase in the front hall. I'm a Michigander so I was fascinated with the ups and downs of the town. My aunt knew the people at the castle so, although I don't remember much about it, I've been through it. There are some amazing old buildings there. You've done a great job of showing the best side of the town. I saw a video awhile back where the person showed the other side, and it was sad. It looks like a clean town, and I hope the residents can slowly bring it back to life. Thanks.
Brownsville was primed to be a bustling river city, almost like Pittsburgh. One of the buildings you were on, on Market St, across from the parking lot, and next to the tear-down lot, was a former Old Fellows Lodge. It was then used as an arts academy and performing arts center. It is now abandoned after the academy moved next to the police station. It is/was beautiful inside. That church (former Methodist church) you peeked in always caught my attention when I was driving home. It is for sale for $85K, but there's so much damage from elements. There are a lot of churches because of the many denominations, heritages --Catholic, Byzantine, Orthodox, Methodist, Lutheran, Baptist and more. Like a dozen+. In Fayette County, we will call churches "The Italian church; the Polish church; the Slovak church; the Irish church", etc., because it was a place where people could gather with those from the country and culture they came from, share traditional foods, and speak & worship in their languages. There is a former synagogue that was converted to hold a business and it is still there and active.
The video seems to portray a ghost town, albeit: Very clean and orderly. I'm curious how they manage to keep the area looking decent, with so little going on. What produces real estate taxes and necessary revenue?
A number of years ago, we took a wrong turn and ended up driving through downtown Brownsville. I said at the time that it looked like a movie set for a depression era movie. It was very sad.
Wow. This showed up on my RU-vid front page randomly, because I'm not sure they would have any way to link me to it. But my father's family is from Brownsville. After my grandfather was killed in WW2, my grandma taught in Brownsville schools and my dad went to school there, until they moved later. And his uncle was a minister there, although I'm not sure which church. I used to go with my grandma to visit her sister and stay in Brownsville in the 80's. I remember going to the castle. By the 90's, most everyone in the family from there had either passed away or moved elsewhere.
I’ve always wondered if towns like this could be revitalized with WFH and high speed internet. Just need a nice bar, coffee shop, and some other amenities that people can walk to. Sure it’s not Brooklyn, but for 20% of the price I’m sure you could find enough young earners willing to give it a shot.
I’d like to extend an invitation to come back around the new year when many more businesses will be opened. Fresh fuel cafe, Fiddles plus more. The cast iron bridge is getting ready to be rebuilt as well. Bridges are being fixed, roads paved, and parks built. All by team efforts from people like yourself who love Brownsville, and find it curiously fascinating. My husbands family sold many properties to the Leggets after the death of the main owner.
It's mind boggling that you didn't mention Joe Hardy!!! (84 Lumber Billionaire Founder - Nemacolin Woodlands Resort Owner (about 30 min from Brownsville). You need to research how he used Brownsville as a "flash-in-the-pan" trick (like Liggett). So that Hardy could get elected to Fayette County Commissioner in the early 2000's. I've personally always wondered Liggett's tie to Joe Hardy, and the timing of his run for County Commissioner, (and use of Brownsville). By bringing "Mob Tied - Governor" Ed Rendell to Brownsville in 2005. All based around "saving and revitalizing". Let me ask anyone with eyes - "How does it look to you?" (exactly my point).
I lived in Brownsville in the mid to late 1990s and I never knew the Ligget story! My place was a block away from the castle. I used to walk to the old town square by the castle and enjoy a cigar and the scenery. It's a beautiful place in spring/summer when everything is green. I am sort of sad that they tore down some of the old buildings though. I liked them. I moved back to Pennsylvania in 2019 so one of these days I will make the five hour drive to Brownsville and check it out.
When my husband and I were stationed in West Germany 1984-1993 the soldiers stationed there back then used to joke and say that Germany " rebuilt with preserved actual blueprints for the city centers " made West Germany look in 1984 like they won WW2. Whenever we returned to the states to travel by car to visit friends and relatives it was quiet shocking to see one old town after another just like what you are showing us. The Cable news every day with thie slick commercials and foolish talk shows act like the states have been well preserved when just visit Gary Indiana and now with all the Tornado damage recently the weather gods are very angry . I always wished I studied archetecture to restore these building as they have in Europe by hiring experts from Germany to Italy and France with their desire to keep their old world architecture back in business. The people who work in the state and local governments need to get out of their offices and go on a walking tour with you ! Then they need to all go to Europe and see what they preserved after two world wars. The states look like we lost all wars in the last 250 years ! Thank you for sharing your tour of Brownsville < OA I love Western PA - Very peaceful and tranquil.
The European countries, including Germany, Italy, and France did not rebuild themselves. They did it very largely with much help and money from the United States and through the Marshall plan: Congress appropriated $13.3 billion for European recovery, which is roughly equivalent to $150 billion today. The aid initially came in the form of shipments of food, fuel, machinery, and other staples from the United States. It later led to investment in industrial capacity in Europe, which helped revitalize European industries. The Marshall Plan also provided political and economic stability to European countries, which helped to pull them closer to the United States.
Well… US Steel ..Braddock Works , was just bought out by Nippon Steel … so did the US really win WW2 . I don’t see too many US cars on the roadways either. Really a shame how they sold out this country!
I went to college like 10 minutes away from here. Used to drive through here at least once a week. Extremely sad town and honestly region of the state. I remember the biggest thing to come to the area was a sheetz that our entire campus would swarm
Unfortunately there a more than a few towns like this in the rural areas of PA. I am impressed that even though there are lots of abandoned buildings I didn't see any graffiti or even much trash blighting the town. Obviously, its citizens still have pride in their hometown. Also like the posters hanging from the telephone polls. I'm guessing they are honoring veterans who served in maybe WWII and/or Korea. Never saw that anywhere and a wonderful way to remember these men who time is taking from us.
Many towns in Pennsylvania have these posters that commemorate veterans. Given the numbers, most are from the ww2 era through today. I’m always impressed by the effort and care the local folks take in remembering their local service members. Brownsville is like many small towns in Pennsylvania. Though Brownsville has some uniquely well preserved older buildings. Also, most towns in Pennsylvania have a lot of churches in them. They reflect the many faith traditions of the many immigrant communities. To net the story of their decline: the elite leaders of the country sold their local communities out for cash. They fooled themselves and their communities on a false narrative of global trade. Yes, many profited, and very few of them were in places like Brownsville….
@@stephenlight647 My family is from NE PA and you are certainly right about the many churches. The same goes for cemetaries. Each church had its cemetary. Irish Catholics were buried in one cemetary. Italians had theirs as did Poles/slovaks, the Protestants were more likely to be buried together regardless of ethnicity. When my Irish Catholic dad married my English-Lenni Lenape-PA Dutch Episcopal mom back in 1950 that was considered a mixed marriage and a bit of a scandal.😄
The demand for steel did not decline. American businesses started buying foreign steel, thus destroying communities like Brownsville. The American government did nothing to stop it.
First we rebuilt Japan after WW2 and our old mills could not compete with their newer cold rolled technology then we advocated for China to become part of the WEC and they began dumping steel here. People dont know what goes on behind the political curtain- and its both parties not one sided at all!
I'm from Little Washington, now live outside Ocean City Md. My parents talked about Brownsville often. Sadly, every time I drive through or stop at Brownsville, it seems to look worse than before. Saddens me, as western PA is of my heritage.
Thank you for the video. It brought back a lot of memories. My father was from Newell and went to High School in Brownsville. Two of my uncles worked for the P&LE Railroad. As with a previous post, I graduated from California University of Pa in 1966. After WW II, my family moved to Point Marion where he became the Superintendent of Schools in the Albert Gallatin School District. There are many such small towns that suffered the same fate as Brownsville. When coal died out, so did the towns. The flood in the 80’s sealed the fate of the river towns. I find that returning is very depressing.
This was neat. My grandmother and family were huge pioneers founding much of Brownsville. The Krepps and Moffitt Families. Apparently the Krepps pioneered the first ferry across the Monongahela. My 2x grandparents were postmasters of the town for years. The old homes they owned along Water Street, 500 & 518 were original to them but have been torn down. I’m trying to find out more about why and when but haven’t gotten too lucky there. My grandfather was born in that hospital in 1927 for 7 days for a total of $57! I have many many photos of the former days. It’s so cool to see being on the other side of the country in CA so thank you for showing me around.
I got a terrible speeding ticket in Brownsville on my way to my reserve unit just outside of town. That cop hit me with everything he could. No fond memories of Brownsville sorry. Thankfully the guys from my reserve unit helped me out by squaring me away with some money so I did not take a total loss for the weekend. Not nice of them to target Soldiers on their way to drill on the weekends.
Brownsville was the home of Chief Redstone and was called Redstone during the French and Indian War. Chief Redstone fought against George Washington at fort Necessity just outside of Uniontown Pa. I grew up in Uniontown Pa and played sports against Brownsville. They had some good football teams.
I dont believe you know alot about immigrant history especially sourhwestern PA. Growing up in a community near Pittsburgh each ethnic group had its own identity....German Italian Irish Polish othodox Greek Slovak..etc. Their churches reflected their communities. There were alot of small Protestant churches as well. I never thought of Brownsville as a suburb of Pittsburgh...it was part of this area in Pa that probably saw its share of immigrants. If you are interested in history. Western Pa is rich in sites relating to the French and indian war to the growing industrialists of the gilded age. I'm saddened to hear of the recent decline of this town.😢 Hope better things are in store for them. 👍
I go to Brownsville for three things. Bowman’s castle, Paceys restaurant and the steam show. I’d love the actual town to revive and have shops and eateries. I’d go more often. Great video!! Edit 4 things: the drive in movie theatre!!! Town has so much potential. Very sad.
The Brownsville Drive In used to show porn movies back in the 70's and back then just the mention of it's name would raise eyebrows and was borderline scandalous, one point sometime around 1980 or so they changed formats and started showing regular theatrical Hollywood movies there, it's where I saw Stripes in 1981 when I was in high school so definitely by then they'd done their format change. I was born and raised in Uniontown right up old Rt 40 from Brownsville and even worked in Brownsville for 3 years at Hillman Barge, he walked past a sign at one point in the video for what it's called now, Heartland Fabrication. In the last year or so I was surfing through Netflix's menu and saw a series produced by them and watched the trailer for it, at one point in it I could swear I saw the Lane Bane bridge in the background so I Googled the name of the series and yep, shot in Brownsville Pa.
Sad that this is the state of most "main streets" in America. The loss of industry and the invention of the shopping mall killed the beautiful downtown's of the USA.
God bless the ppl in that area. My dad was born and raised in Allison PA. Been to Brownsville and Uniontown a ton of times. My dad went to Redstone High School. My Grandpa was a coalminer. Lots of memories from that area. Loved this video. Thank you very much for your time and info.
I believe that Brownsville also has a Colonial era history as Redstone Old Fort. It was a settlement by the time of the French and Indian War, 1757-1763.
It was the Whiskey Rebellion that happened just on the other side of the River in West Brownsville. Colonists / Farmers didn’t take well to being taxed on the corn and grain. There was a meeting place at an old since demolished barn that stood there.
The reason that there were so many churches was because of the many nationalities of immigrants to the area! If you go out to the many small communities you would find out that they were called coal patches! These were patches of homes for each coal mine and each area held a certain group of people! One patch would be where the Polish people lived and another would be the Italians, another was Germans, Slovakians, and so on! There is more history in this town and the surrounding communities but you only touch a small fraction! Brownsville has a huge history with the small communities all around it!
I think this place looks like a great place to live. Right near the river. Historic as hell--I found a home there built in 1816! I would move there if it weren't so far away from my family. I think this area is going to come back.
In 2002, literally overnight after 9/11 , the developer here built 2000 new houses in New developments that didn't exist before that. They had been vacant farmland. And the average house was 150k, and these new houses were 750k to 1.5 million AND EVERY ONE OF THEM SOLD IN JUST 2 MONTHS They had more buyers than they had lots And I was shocked when I saw that these houses were vacant from 6am to 8pm every week day. They just didn't want to live in NY or NJ And they could afford to buy these million dollar houses and drive 3 hours each way every day.
Che k out Ambridge pa 1 hr down the Ohio from Brownsville the history is crazy... very important connections to George Washington and the Seneca Indians ,logstown ,and General Anthony Wayne from the 1700s
I lived in Brownsville for a few years about a dozen years ago. Some of the old buildings along the main drag didn't have their upper-most windows boarded up, and looking up through those windows, one could see daylight, indicating the roof had caved in on a lot of those buildings, including (I think) the old train station near The Flatiron Building. It's sad and disappointing when historic buildings aren't maintained and used. It's nice to see the new park; it wasn't there, but I think it was being planned, when I lived there. That's too bad that Fiddle's was closed. Their mushroom swiss burger and fries were pretty good when I ate there. Milkshakes were pretty good, too. You had a nice, if chilly, day to explore. I enjoyed the tour/revisit. Editing to add: About 20 years ago, some friends and I were coming across the Lane Bane bridge into Brownsville, headed east from Washington, PA (aka to the locals, Little Washington); we counted over a dozen churches in Brownsville, and we weren't sure if we got them all. It was a booming town once upon a time, as you touched on, with _many_ different cultures, nationalities, and ethnicities, so different churches were built to accommodate all the different denominations to which people belonged. If Fiddle's had been open, I'll bet a few regulars could have filled you in on some history, lore, and the true number of churches in Brownsville!
I actually have the honor of living beside the town and I’m turning 50 this year the town has so many crazy stories that would not be possible if there wasn’t some truth behind all the negativity there is definitely a very ominous feeling when there at dusk by ones self
I’m sure, with todays shortage of housing, if groups (not one) of investors that work remotely, would be willing to invest in fixing up some of the more interesting old buildings into very unique loft style condos….I think if the city invests in some bike trails or park space and some select demolition projects as well
The Redstone Castle predates Nemicolen's Castle buy many hundreds maybe thousands of years. It had stone ramparts made of huge boulders of red stone Redstone Creek is named for. Although the stines were destroyed by settlers, the pentagonal earthen rampart that it sat in is still under the train tracks that cross said creek at its mouth into the Monongahela at Brownsville. At this place is now an edie that prevents a large whirlpool. This is the lair of Mishipeshu, the underwater panther. When tou see a petroglyph of this entity near water is like a modern sign alwrting you the swimming is risky here. I have heard there was once a big one there. I could go on about the ancient history of Brownsville it has always been a special place. I have many friends there and many fond memories. I never knew the Brownsville curse was because of a creepy investor. Thats a lesson for sure.
I grew up in Centerville PA not to far from Brownsville. Thanks for posting about the history of a place I've traveled through so many time. I also noticed the Connecticut Tigers hat you have, good stuff.
In the 1st half of the 20th century many immigrants came to steel & mining towns to work. It wasn't common to have a car in small towns & cities. Churches & schools & corner grocers were walkable. Every ethnicity had their own church, originally in their native language. There would be an Italian Catholic church, a Polish Catholic church, a Ukrainian orthodox church, a German Lutheran church etc. Every few blocks, in their respective ethnic neighborhoods. My grandparents emigrated to such a town.
This vid makes me feel so sad. A once bustling city in serious decline, with beautiful old buildings, empty. Like a ghost town. I never been there, but the history now lays dormant. I hope that someday they can revitalize Brownsville. So many churches, because people are of different religious sects. Glad they all worshipped, like we did from childhood.😌🙏😊
You might want to check the names of folks in the cemetery to give you a clue about the immigrant populations that settled and worked in the area. Abandon buildings can only tell you so much. A cemetery has much more to offer as for the people who lived there and where they came from. Many small towns have several churches.
Great video Ian! I lived in Pittsburgh for a decade and only headed down 43 to 40 that far past Brownsville a few times. Have you headed up 51 towards the south hills and done a video on all the strip malls and buildings sitting empty that are owned by the Lavitske Brothers? You can literally walk up and down a long stretch of 51 with just empty storefronts that have been vacant for years! It’s crazy! Western PA is an endless source of RU-vid content!
Thanks for watching! I actually haven’t spent much time in the route 51 corridor area. Is the area you’re talking about kinda up by the old Century III mall? I’m really starting to develop a fascination with western PA. And you’re right, seemingly endless content too!
the mural seen around 19:00 was done by a few members of Pittsburgh's IATSE union, it was painted for the short lived Netflix show I Am Not Okay With This from 2020
I have lived here my whole life and in my eyes it’s always been a sad Pretty run down place within the past year I’ve noticed some things have started to get nicer but still no real change I hope one day I’ll be able to see it change for the better
I grew up in California PA and we would walk the tracks to West Brownsville and back in the early 90's. Sometimes over to Brownsville up to the Hiller carnival
I lived here all my life I think whatvkilled Brownsville is the malls and down turn in 1980s. Todaybthe big box stores , Brownsville hardware folder when owner died. Walmart across the river . Crime was taking hold in latev1970s
🤔 hmmm 🤔. I'm actually liking this area !!! Why ??? I grew up in Akron , and joined the Service in 79 ... Bored with the Service life , so I got out in bumming around various states for a decade ... 😢 Ended up in Maine where I made a decent living for myself ... However, I never liked the modern changes in areas like Portsmouth and Portland where average people can't afford to live .. Therefore, Brownsville PA is extremely appealing to me 😊😊😊😊😊
My dad is from Brownsville. We go back often, and the older I get, the prouder I feel of having Appalachian roots. What a beautiful and resilient part of the world.
Hi , mock castle you mean , I'm I England and we have lots of castles / fortifications dating back to the 12th century . We tend to repurpose a lot of our old derelict buildings so to keep them for future generations .There's a ghost village in England that was abandoned in the 1940s its amazing. Great video very informative 😊
We had a guy do something similar in St. Louis although not in downtown. Google paul mckee northside regeneration. Guy bought 1,600 properties, mostly residential and never did anything with them.
Thank you for this video. There is a property- residential land that is for sale for 8k. Brownsville is about an hour away from Pittsburgh. We are contemplating if it is good to live there or not.
My old girlfriend was from Brownsville , we visited her family in the early 1990’s I walked those streets back then and it was the same then as I see you walk it now , omg nothing has changed
It's nice that you walk. I'm in the UK and watch these videos and it always strikes me how few pedestrians there are on the streets, especially in historic little towns like this. It's kinda depressing.
Greensburg, Uniontown and Waynesburg are probably more explorable than Brownsville. Also keep in mind Southwestern PA is known for it's Slavic population that immigrated here, lots of different kinds of Churches all over.
for a town of 2000 people there appears to be an awful lot of vehicle traffic. The eminent domain laws have really been abused by GOV'T. It appears that the city/county/state has NOT done any better than the private owner. GOV'T is NOT the panacea some think in fact I'd say it is the death nail for a lot private ownership...homes/businesses/churches/charities.
I raced(and crashed my brains out) at Brownsville once in the early 00s. The track was run by the Combs family a legendary motocross family. The track was fun, it was the first time my dad saw us race. Overall we have great memories of Brownsville and I was bummed when I found out the track wasn't going to open again.
I have fam all over that area was born in UT family still in republic, hillar, the hotel was my step mother's parent's love western to S. western Pa North to city of butler south to farmington ❤😢
I live in western New York and there are many towns and small cities that are just as bad. The taxes in both states are so high that renovation and increasing the population won’t be soon. It’s sad and self perpetuating.
I was born in the Brownsville hospital & grew up in Brownsville /W. Brownsville & left in 1963 & have been back many times. I walked the path u walked many times. I will always have fond memories of my childhood there & be thankful for a safe / fun childhood. tks Mike ( Mickey) Carr
Until Americans stop conflating wealth with virtue this sort of thing will continue to happen. The ludicrous level of trust placed in the people that did this to the town is pitifully tragic.
I moved out of PA 20+ years ago. Moved for employment, ended up in Delaware not exactly livable jobs here Glad I'm retired now. Thanks for your Brownsville walk around.
When it comes to real estate and mystery investors you have to pay close attention to why government does nothing. Because, there is money in doing nothing.
You should look into the towns relationship to the National Road Heritage Corridor.A historic preservation and tourism supported by the Commonwealth of PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
Also, I would venture to guess the 7 churches thing was due to a lot of the different immigrant cultures in the area all having different places of worship
Brownsville has tons of history that was missed in the video like the old redstone fort and its importance in the french and indian war which started down in the laurel highlands but involved a lot of the area up to Pittsburgh. I live up in Pittsburgh. We had old family down in that area and my grandfather would take the trolleys from the city and then trains to go visit in the 30s and talk about how it was booming all the way after until he got back from the war. My other grandparents had friends down there and would visit from the city as well taking 88 or 51 down. All my grandparents talked about what a shame it was by the 90s on what happened to it. It became a lore in itself. In the later 2000s there was a lot of renewed interest in the town itself and people wanted to get invested but the Liggits held it hostage. There are a lot of ex Brownsville residents who moved up here to the city and the south hills. They wanted to go back but the damage the liggits did was far reaching. Believe it or not, its still a huge issue with property in the town today. I had a coworker who's family came from there and he was looking at opening a business in it 2 years ago. The costs far exceeded the value. The buildings need so much work and that's if you can get them cleared legally to buy. Liggit bought them for 1 dollar but was asking for almost 10000 times that. I just looked up some of the properties down there and he isn't wrong. Even the newly renovated ones seem to be overvalued for where they are right now. Railroads owning a lot of the prime land is another issue that we also suffer up here on pittsburgh. Liggitt was building his empire on casinos and gambling. If they could possibly develop the waterfront and work on it being a gateway to the wild lands down in the Laurel highlands they could stand a chance. I always thought if they could also get a shuttle service to CalU(california university of PA) they might be able to attract and turn it into a college suburb almost. Attract younger college kids to an almost private downtown with related businesses. But we will see. The state and town have been working hard and hopefully they will be able to solve some of the issues in time before a lot of those buildings fall down. Sadly brownsville is just one of many of those towns on the mon that followed the rust belt city story but unlike pittsburgh wasn't able to reverse it. Fayettenam also has Uniontown.
