Photo of the Day: Fort Pitt Block House, Pittsburgh

I took this picture a little more than a week ago, when I was finishing a one-day visit to Pittsburgh. The Block House is the last remaining structure from Fort Pitt, built in 1764, one year after the end of the French and Indian War. The fort’s commander, British Col. Henry Bouquet, did not want a repeat of the close call the struggling settlement experienced in that war: a months-long siege by Native Americans led by Pontiac. The Block House was one of the defensive redoubts Bouquet had built.

An official 250 Commemoration Ceremony was held yesterday featuring, among others, Pittsburgh Mayor William Peduto. Another significant celebration featuring this Point State Park landmark will occur on September 11, 2014, at the Wyndham Grand Hotel, in Downtown Pittsburgh. The keynote address will be given by Julie Nixon Eisenhower, daughter of President Richard Nixon.