Get To Know Crawford-Roberts in the Hill District

📌 1 Thing To Know

The Hill District — including Crawford-Roberts, Bedford Dwellings, Upper Hill, Terrace Village, and Middle Hill neighborhoods — buzzed with Black businesses, entertainment, and culture as far back as the 19th century, spawning a storied Black newspaper, a legendary baseball team, and welcoming jazz legends like Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis, and Billy Eckstine. In fact, local musicians were credited as the founders of Be Bop.

That all changed in the 1950s when this vibrant celebration of Black life was destroyed in the name of “urban renewal.” The city razed swaths of the Lower Hill and forced out 8,000 residents and 400 businesses to make room for the Civic Arena — the precursor to PPG Paints Arena — and its parking lots.

In 1966, residents drew a line at the intersection of Centre Avenue and Crawford Street, demanding “progress” stop there. By then, many thousands more families and businesses had been forced to leave. You’ll find a landmark to their activism at Freedom Corner. Today, the Hill is helping direct a wave of new investment in spaces like the New Granada Theater, Jeron X. Grayson Community Center, and the First National Bank Tower, which is being led in part by ancestors of families displaced in the 1950s.

➡️ Explore more Hill District history with the neighborhood’s digital archives.

☕ Food & Drink

Redhawk Coffee & Market on Fifth Avenue is a one-stop shop for coffee, pastries, pantry staples, and good vibes. Bring your friends to pile in on the couch, or set up your work station along their comfy bench seating. Then order another cup at Cares CommuniTEA Cafe and a quick bite from Al’s Fish and Chicken.

🛍️ Shop Local

Stop in Salem’s Market at Centre Heldman Plaza for all of your grocery needs, plus Middle Eastern and international flavors. Don’t feel like cooking? Grab something tasty from the deli or prepared foods section. Salem’s fills the former Shop ‘n Save, which sat empty since it closed in 2019. This is the Hill's first grocery store in five years!

👀 Go, See, Do!

Built in the 1840s, the childhood home of famed playwright August Wilson isn’t just a museum — it's a creative hub that honors his legacy through theatrical productions, art exhibitions, literary workshops, and more.

Wilson, who died in 2005, is probably best known for his series of 10 plays called the “American Century Cycle” — some of which have been turned into films by Denzel Washington and others. Look out for the August Wilson House’s annual block parties and backyard productions of Wilson’s plays.

After you discover Wilson’s literary legacy, take in a city view at the August Wilson Park on Cliff Street. There’s a playground, basketball court, picnic tables, and benches — it's a peaceful spot to jot down Pittsburgh musings, like Wilson once did.