The Arc of American Philanthropy and Pittsburgh’s Evolution
by Gregory R. Witkowski and Dwight Burlingame, examines how Pittsburgh philanthropists paralleled, led or lagged behind trends evident in four periods of American philanthropy.
Matters of Faith
by Loretta Sullivan Lobes, presents the sectarian nature of early philanthropy in Pittsburgh, and signals the transition to more scientific means at the end of the nineteenth century.
Captains of Philanthropy?
by Gregory R. Witkowski, compares the giving styles of four well known industrialists – Andrew Carnegie, Henry Clay Frick, Andrew Mellon, and H.J. Heinz.
Uplifting the Poor
by Kathleen W. Buechel, explores conflict over and the delayed journey of establishing an Associated Charities in Pittsburgh, a forerunner of today’s United Way.
The Gendered Dimensions of Women’s Philanthropy
by Jessie B. Ramey, portrays women who founded important charitable institutions, supported a host of community needs individually and collectively, and established many of Pittsburgh most recent foundations.
The “Grassroots” Safety Net
by Jared N. Day, details the culture of care and collective action within the African American Community that provided support, evidenced agency and advanced social change.
Generating Knowledge for Social Good
by Mary Brignano examines the systems thinking behind the trends of scientific philanthropy evident in the Pittsburgh Survey, Carnegie Hero Fund, and economic and medical research of the Buhl and Falk Foundations in the early twentieth century.
Conceiving and Conserving Environmental Assets
by Susan M. Rademacher, presents philanthropy’s role in the development of green spaces, parks and riverfronts propelling Pittsburgh’s environmental transformation.
The Art of Downtown Revitalization
by Angelique Bamberg shares how philanthropists and other civic leaders used patient capital to transition a blighted part of downtown into a cultural district and destination.
Private Dollars for a Healthier Public
by Andrew T. Simpson chronicles how private philanthropy found niches of opportunity to advance medical science, improve healthcare and community based service and outcomes in the region.
Advocacy and Public Policy
by Tony Macklin shows how philanthropists used tools of public education and advocacy to influence public policy, reform government services and address inequity in the region.
New Forms of Philanthropy
by Robert E. Gleeson, explores philanthropy’s uncharted role in economic development, including initially reluctant efforts to help the region transition from its reliance on steel to a knowledge and technology based economy.
Afterword
Weaving It Together
by editor Kathleen W. Buechel knits together the themes of civic engagement, diverse forms of capital, differing intentions, varied outcomes and enduring belief in improving Pittsburgh that united, separated and differentiated such diverse philanthropists over time.