⑦Central Oakland’s “Little Italy” @ Panther Hollow neighborhood

Have you ever come across a place unexpected but you just could never forget after the encounter? These pictures were taken during a morning jog. Did you notice the color of paint on the pole, bench and picnic table, and the Italy flag? It’s a memorial station established in December 2007 to acknowledge the Italian immigrants’ heritage rooted in the Panther Hollow neighborhood that have had its unique impact on the City of Pittsburgh since 1800s. This is such a place I can’t forget.


I used to passing through those many streets everyday in a haste and never noticed those significant or insignificant stories here and there, or never stopped to read what’s on a plaque. As if life is always a haste rushing from point A to point B, and anything in between is not important and not worthy of attention. But this little spot in the Panther Hollow neighborhood in central Oakland forever reminded me of the importance of being curious, perceptive, and humble, because it showed me how neglectful, ignorant, and willfully blind I can become. The morning jog was refreshing and this discovery of this memorial make it memorable.


Beer winning trivia @ Panther Hollow neighborhood, Italian Heritage

1. Panther Hollow is a small, somewhat isolated neighborhood at the bottom of Joncaire Street in Junction Hollow that runs along Boundary Street and is located in the Central Oakland. The neighborhood was settled in late 19th century mostly by Italian immigrants from Pizzoferrato and Gamberale, Italy.

2. Christopher Columbus came to the New World in 1492, but it took many generations after that before his fellow Italians would establish a large presence in North America. According to the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission, before the Civil War, most Italians left the homeland for South America, settling primarily in Brazil and Argentina because employment there was plentiful. When the United States became prosperous in the late 1800s, more Italians came to America. In 1870, the U.S. Census reported 784 Italian-born residents in our state. By 1890, the population had grown to 2,794, and in 1900, the Italian population had exploded with more than 66,000 people of Italian descent living in Pennsylvania. Most Italians came to Pittsburgh by way of New York City over the railways.With the advent of steamship travel, large number of immigrants started to arrive. Around 1890, these immigrants began to settle in places such as Oakland, East Liberty, the Lower Hill District, and Bloomfield. Many of these neighborhoods had previously been home to German and Irish immigrants.

3. In the year of 1949, the Italian room was established in the Cathedral of Learning. The room is adorned with a gold rosette embellished ceiling, along with an architrave engraved with names of Italian geniuses such as Botticelli, Galileo, Verdi, and Marconi.

4. Pittsburgh Steelers player Franco Harris’ mother was an Italian.


Your ID @ Panther Hollow neighborhood, Italian

How many original Italian families were listed on the remembrance memorial (see the picture)?