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Birmingham shouldn't have been blown away this much in the poll, even though Pittsburgh is the correct choice. A more competitive comparison would have instead been Birmingham versus say Memphis or Baton Rouge.
You have to understand the closeness of a poll is not necessarily representative of how close they are as places.
There could be a tight consensus. Like in a 1-10 scale Pitt a 7 and Birmingham a 6.5 but a Very tight grouping of people thinking Pitt is a bit better, vs cities with divergent options about them might have a muddled poll.
Portland is a an example of a city that there is a group that thinks it's paradise and a group that thinks it's a vile place while Pittsburgh and Birmingham are more of settled quantities
Regarding history, Birmingham has much more black history than Pittsburgh, though Pittsburgh does have some black history of its own. Otherwise, Pittsburgh has been around much longer than Birmingham, and was also a primary node in both the French & Indian War and the Industrial Revolution. More simply put, Pittsburgh wins in terms of overall history, but Birmingham wins in terms of black history specifically.
Pittsburgh has a significant black history in terms of both baseball and jazz. The Pittsburgh Crawfords and the Homestead Grays were very accomplished major leage professional black baseball teams from the era, but there were others too. The Hill District was a well recognized hotspot for jazz, and there were quite a few famous musicians of that era from Pittsburgh, including Walt Harper, Billy Eckstine, Lena Horne, Stanley Turrentine, and George Benson. There aren't many cities that can claim a jazz history like that.
Best universities: Pittsburgh
Weather/Climate: Birmingham
Cost of living: Pittsburgh
Crime: Pittsburgh
Nightlife: Pittsburgh
Culture: Pittsburgh
Outdoor activities: Pittsburgh
Public transit: Pittsburgh
Economy: Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh by a mile.
Birmingham is a lot smaller, first off, and much less developed than Pittsburgh. Not as much culture either. Birmingham has no professional sports teams, unlike Pittsburgh's Penguins, Pirates and Steelers.
Nothing against Birmingham, but this comparison is not a close one.
Best universities: Pittsburgh
Weather/Climate: Birmingham
Cost of living: Pittsburgh
Crime: Pittsburgh
Nightlife: Pittsburgh
Culture: Pittsburgh
Outdoor activities: Pittsburgh
Public transit: Pittsburgh
Economy: Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh by a mile.
Birmingham is a lot smaller, first off, and much less developed than Pittsburgh. Not as much culture either. Birmingham has no professional sports teams, unlike Pittsburgh's Penguins, Pirates and Steelers.
Nothing against Birmingham, but this comparison is not a close one.
Birmingham definitely has culture. No need for me to dive into specifics but "not as much culture" isn't really true, especially since on this site "culture" seems to mean operas and major league sports...
Best universities: Pittsburgh
Weather/Climate: Birmingham
Cost of living: Pittsburgh
Crime: Pittsburgh
Nightlife: Pittsburgh
Culture: Pittsburgh
Outdoor activities: Pittsburgh
Public transit: Pittsburgh
Economy: Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh by a mile.
Birmingham is a lot smaller, first off, and much less developed than Pittsburgh. Not as much culture either. Birmingham has no professional sports teams, unlike Pittsburgh's Penguins, Pirates and Steelers.
Nothing against Birmingham, but this comparison is not a close one.
Saying an African American City has no culture is FOOLISH.
Best universities: Pittsburgh
Weather/Climate: Birmingham
Cost of living: Pittsburgh
Crime: Pittsburgh
Nightlife: Pittsburgh
Culture: Pittsburgh
Outdoor activities: Pittsburgh
Public transit: Pittsburgh
Economy: Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh by a mile.
Birmingham is a lot smaller, first off, and much less developed than Pittsburgh. Not as much culture either. Birmingham has no professional sports teams, unlike Pittsburgh's Penguins, Pirates and Steelers.
Nothing against Birmingham, but this comparison is not a close one.
Pittsburgh definitely has more urban amenities, but the cost of living would be higher than Birmingham's and a much larger share of its housing is very dated. Newer construction in Pittsburgh tends to be expensive as it is in far shorter supply than Birmingham or other southern cities.
Additionally, Birmingham has plenty of outdoor activities, with the southern Appalachian foothills running through the metro area. Having more warmth and sunshine also tends to encourage outdoor activity for most people. Pittsburgh would have the advantage during the summer, but not so much the rest of the year.
Birmingham definitely has culture. No need for me to dive into specifics but "not as much culture" isn't really true, especially since on this site "culture" seems to mean operas and major league sports...
I agree that Birmingham has great culture. Every mid size to larger city does have some. As compared to Pittsburgh though, Pittsburgh is the clear city that comes out with more culture overall, and many more offerings than Birmingham.
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