What is an "Appalachian Culture" (Pittsburgh, Chapman: how much, shops)

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by globalburgh

There isn't any history of cultural animosity towards folks from Appalachia like there was in Detroit and Cincinnati.

Right, but my point was we wouldn't have considered Pittsburgh "hillbilly".

Not that our attitudes should necessarily be considered determinative, but if you want to look to us for evidence, it points to Pittsburgh being distinct from the "hillbilly" parts of Appalachia.

[toosie]

Originally Posted by escilade18

Also one more fact, both San Francisco and Los Angeles are extremely hilly, why are they not "appalachian culture"?

Erm...because Appalachia is in the southern part of the Appalachian Mountain range.

[globalburgh]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Right, but my point was we wouldn't have considered Pittsburgh "hillbilly".

Not that our attitudes should necessarily be considered determinative, but if you want to look to us for evidence, it points to Pittsburgh being distinct from the "hillbilly" parts of Appalachia.

Someone who migrated with other Appalachians from SW PA to Detroit would not stand apart from the other hillbillies. Being from a big city in the mountain chain would run counter to the rural stereotype. As in, Appalachia has no cities.

If you like, I would concede that Pittsburgh is surrounded by Appalachian PA. Then again, Chattanooga is surrounded by Appalachian TN. Asheville is surrounded by Appalachian NC. And so on ...

You might have called someone from SW PA a hillbilly without realizing they were from Pittsburgh (or even PA).

[Hopes]

Now I know why creek valleys are called runs, like Fall Run Park, Squaw Run Road, Saw Mill Run Road, etc.

It never occurred to me that "run" meant anything.

Thanks, Brian!

[globalburgh]

Pittsburgh is Appalachian Urban:

A Voice for Urban Appalachia - Arts & Lifestyle - The Atlantic Cities

“Even living in a city, I feel like the values and culture that I got in my Appalachian roots are very present here,” says Newberry. “I started finding a community of people with similar experiences, and it validated that we are Appalachians even if we don’t fit the dictionary definition of poor, white southerners from the mountain regions of the South. There are people of color, there are people who live outside of the mountain region, there’s all these variations to the definition and those are the things we want to illuminate.”

[Hopes]

Another article about Pittsburgh being urban Appalachia.

This one focuses on the influences of Appalachian folk and bluegrass music:

Pittsburgh, in the Encyclopedia of Appalachia, is referred to as “urban Appalachia.” Some of the sounds of the region are more obvious in some of the bands that play around, such as the Flying Cunninghams, the Carson Street Bluegrass Band, and of course, the great Mac Martin, of Mac Martin and the Dixie Travelers. Mac, a resident of Brookline, not West Virginia, is profiled in this nice piece in the Trib.

Our region also includes a number of excellent bluegrass festivals, such as the Mountaintop Bluegrass Festival in Tarentum, the Laurel Highlands Bluegrass Festival, and Hickory Fest, in Wellsboro, Pa. Incidentally, some of what is called "pittsburghese" is common to much of Appalachia, such as the word, "yinz":“But many of the linguistic features considered unique to the Pittsburgh area are found elsewhere in the region. Words like yinz are used in other parts of the Appalachian Mountains.”

Barbara Johnstone, a CMU professor and one of the authors of the aforementioned quoted essay, has a web site on Pittsburghese. Our town also includes a school that teaches folk music. That is, of course, the Calliope School of Music, which teaches Bluegrass techniques. To learn more about Appalachia, check out the Appalachian Studies Page.

Barnestormin: Pittsburgh: Urban Appalachia

I think it's funny the OP thinks that Appalachian culture isn't relevant in 2012. Guess she's not a fan of folk or bluegrass.

[Copanut]

born and BRED

[escilade18]

Originally Posted by Hopes

I think it's funny the OP thinks that Appalachian culture isn't relevant in 2012. Guess she's not a fan of folk or bluegrass.

I honestly can't say that I know a person who is younger than 50 who is a fan of folk or bluegrass music.

On another note, I really do not see any similarities between Pittsburgh and southern cities like Chattanooga and Asheville. Going by that logic, Detroit and Houston must be alike because they both are surrounded by flat land for miles upon miles

[globalburgh]

Originally Posted by escilade18

On another note, I really do not see any similarities between Pittsburgh and southern cities like Chattanooga and Asheville. Going by that logic, Detroit and Houston must be alike because they both are surrounded by flat land for miles upon miles

Chattanooga, Tennessee (Reconstruction through The Great Depression)

Located near the natural resources needed to make iron, and later, steel, Chattanooga grew on the strength of its production. The charcoal and coke-fired smelters that turned out 150,000 tons of iron in 1870 were producing 1.8 million tons of pig iron in 1890. By 1890 there were machine shops, boiler shops, plow makers, stove works, and at least 2 pipe manufacturers within the city limits, and the city was known as the "Pittsburgh of the South."

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by escilade18

I honestly can't say that I know a person who is younger than 50 who is a fan of folk or bluegrass music.

My children love bluegrass and southern rock! Their friends do too!

You should check out some local Hippy festivals. They're not full of old people! I promise!

And today's folk isn't what you think. Think Tracy Chapman, Alanis Morissette, etc.