The SHHS gets questions, both broad and specific, about Squirrel Hill’s history. We are delighted to offer assistance with your research. We have found the following websites to be useful, so check them out yourself, and enjoy the search.
Squirrel Hill Historical Society website
You might not be aware of all the information on the SHHS website. Explore the menu options! One of the best—and most fun—option is the SQUIRREL HILL NEWS NEWSPAPERS, published weekly from 1935 to 1970. Click on the link “Squirrel Hill News Newspapers” to access them. Another link with a lot of information is the MEMBERS PAGE, which has all the monthly SHHS Newsletters since 2014. (The Members Page is password protected, so you need to be a member to access it.)
Historic Pittsburgh
This is the University of Pittsburgh’s phenomenal website about Pittsburgh’s history. It has searchable books, directories, maps, photos, and many other resources.
Pittsburgh Historic Maps
This website has a sequence of Pittsburgh maps, including plat and aerial maps, from 1795 to 1993 that overlay and fade into each other so you can see how an area developed through time. The plat maps show property owners’ names.
PennState University Libraries “Index to Pittsburgh PA and Allegheny County Sanborn Maps Volumes”
This website has interactive Sanborn maps of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County maps, and also other maps and aerial photos.
Pittsburgh Jewish Newspaper Project, CMU
The Pittsburgh Jewish Newspaper Project has more than one hundred years of Jewish newspapers published in Pittsburgh, beginning in the 1890s.
Jewish Genealogy Society of Pittsburgh
This website has family information including births, engagements, marriages, obituaries, and a wide variety of social and business news along with photographs.
Rauh Jewish Archives
The Heinz History Center’s Rauh Jewish Archives website has information about the history of the Jewish community in Pittsburgh.
Squirrel Hill Urban Coalition
The Squirrel Hill Urban Coalition is a nonprofit community group dedicated to preserving, improving and celebrating the quality of life in the 14th Ward of the City of Pittsburgh. It deals mostly with current and future issues and projects in Squirrel Hill.
Turner Cemetery/Mary S. Brown-Ames U. M. Church Historical and Genealogical Website
This website presents the results of research on Turner Cemetery, 3424 Beechwood Boulevard, containing the remains of the earliest settlers of Squirrel Hill, and the early history of Squirrel Hill South.
Google News Archives
This free website has hundreds of newspapers, including a number of Pittsburgh newspapers beginning in the early 1800s.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Archives
This archive has a monthly subscription fee, but the keyword search is free and will give you some information, such as date and page number of an item you are looking for. If you subscribe, you can access full articles in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, The Pittsburgh Press, and the Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph, starting in 1877.
Homestead Hebrews
This website traces the history of the Jews of Homestead, with articles, plat maps and other information about a community whose history has close ties to Squirrel Hill.
Don’s List
This free website has Allderdice, Schenley, Peabody, Fifth Avenue and many other high-school yearbooks, along with census information, military records, and other information.
Local Historical Organizations
East Liberty Valley Historical Society
Lawrenceville Historical Society
Oakmont Historical Society
Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation
Preservation Pittsburgh
Rivers of Steel
Senator John Heinz History Center
Whiskey Rebel Central
Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh
Squirrel Hill Historical Society 