Lawrenceville was founded in 1814 by William Foster, father of composer Stephen Foster, who was born there in 1826. It is named for Captain James Lawrence, hero of the War of 1812, famous for his dying words, “Don’t Give Up The Ship!” Lawrenceville was selected as home to the Allegheny Arsenal, due to “The area’s accessibility to river transportation and its proximity to what was then the nation’s only iron producing district”. Lawrenceville was annexed to the city of Pittsburgh in 1868. One of the original buildings, a log home built in the 1820s, survived until July 2011 at 184 38th Street.
As seen on older maps, two sizable islands once sat opposite Lawrenceville in the Allegheny river: Herrs Island (now known as Washington’s Landing), which stretched from roughly 28th street to 37th street, and McCullough’s Island (sometimes labeled Wainwright’s Island or “Good Liquor” Island), which stretched from roughly 35th street to 40th street. Washington’s Landing is named after an event in 1753 in which George Washington was thrown from his raft while crossing the Allegheny River and scrambled to safety on a nearby island. However, Washington did not actually land on Washington’s Landing—he landed on McCullough’s Island. Although Washington’s Landing still exists, McCullough’s Island, which sat much closer to the mainland, does not. It is not clear what happened to McCullough’s Island. It is possible that it simply eroded away into nothing, or—considering how narrow the channel was between it and Lawrenceville—it might have been incorporated into the mainland.
Today, Lawrenceville is undergoing a revitalization, and has been noted by The New York Times as a “go-to destination”. Transplanted young hipsters and those who have lived in Lawrenceville for their entire lives dwell side by side, as the neighborhood’s affordable housing has become a major draw for those looking to renovate an older home at a reasonable cost. As of 2007, real estate price appreciation was the second highest in the city, after the South Side, according to Carnegie Mellon University.
Many art galleries have opened up all along Lawrenceville’s main artery, Butler Street, and the surrounding area, along with clothing boutiques, furniture stores, and a number of new restaurants and coffee shops.
All information about Lawrenceville courtesy of Wikipedia.