The Andrew Carnegie Story

Didn't think I'd forget to highlight the life of Andrew Carnegie, did you?

His history is fascinating and worth sharing for those of you who may be interested in learning more about this man who has strong ties to the Pittsburgh area.


Andrew Carnegie was born in a cottage in Dunfermline,the son of a linen weaver.   Thanks to his wife, Margaret, who purchased it as a gift for him, the home still exists today and is open to the public for touring.

 Here you can visit the room where he was  born.

The same room was the kitchen, dining, and living area for the family.  The downstairs room was devoted entirely to the looms.

Now, here's what I learned about weaving looms:  the air must be kept humid to keep the flax threads from breaking.  So, the floor would have been dirt, and the room would have been cold since no fire was ever made near the loom for fear of drying out the threads.  

Two windows were in the rooms that held the looms because that was the only way to get light in order to see the intricate threads in order to weave the linen.

This loom is over 200 years old and you can see the beauty of the jacquard that is being woven on this machine.

Just imagine what it must have been like to have to depend on the light through the windows when the days in the winter are only 6 hours of sunlight, and even at that, much of the day can be cloudy.  Add to that extreme humidity, and it's no wonder these people suffered from rheumatism and trouble with their eyes!  

There is only one original item in the room where Andrew was born. That is a desk that was his father's.  He had sold it in order to pay the passage to the United States and the family of the buyer donated the desk to the museum.

Andrew's father was a highly skilled successful weaver.  His business prospered until the weaving process was replaced by machine.  Hand woven linen was no longer feasible in order to earn a living.   His father finally gave up the business and sold everything that he had to pay for the family's passage to America.  They set up residence on Rebecca Street in Allegheny City which I find interesting as this is the area near where Marty's family immigrated just about 10 years later.

Andrew's family had a child centered approach to family life which was unusual for the time.
They were avid readers of newspapers and they took great interest in the politics of the day.  Much of Andrew's love of books and political interests stemmed from the attention that he received from his mother.  He admittedly gave much credit to his mother regarding his success.

This was one of my favorite quotes in the heritage center: 

Now how nice is that?

Andrew trained as a telegraph operator, and soon realized that he had an unusual ability to translate the code by ear.  There were only 2 other people in the country with such a talent.  Now, this is something that I had never known.

His natural ability to translate code opened up many doors for him.  Soon he was an employee of the PA Railroad Co supervising the laying of telegraph wires along the tracks.

Andrew saved his earnings and made his first investment in 1855 at the suggestion of his uncle.
Less than a year later, he earned his first dividend check. It gave him the first penny of revenue from capital, something that he did not have to sweat to earn.  He considered that to be the goose that laid the golden egg.

His wise investments made him a wealthy man, but he believed that wealth required a person to help humanity.  So as soon as he began earning, he began giving his money away to needy organizations.

Coming from the Pittsburgh area, I had realized that Carnegie established many libraries in different towns.  The Homestead and Braddock libraries were set up for the people of the mills, so that they could have books to read, just as he had been given the same opportunity when he was young.  I never realized just how many libraries Carnegie was responsible for starting.  On my first trip to Scotland, nearly every town that I visited had a library set up by this man. Apparently,  he spent over $60 million creating 2811 free public libraries  around the world. 

The heritage center highlighted many organizations who are indebted to the man.  I won't bore you with that info, but I will admit that I was surprised to see these two familiar characters peering at me through the window!

The helmet is from Carnegie Mellon University.

This fabulous information center is attached to the original house.  It is well laid out and brimming with information that features the history behind this famous man.  I wonder just how many people realize that this man believed that it was his responsibility to give away the money that he earned in order to help others who had not been as fortunate as he?

The statue of Andrew Carnegie stands in Pittencrieff Park.  Carnegie purchased the park and bequeathed it to the town to be used for public recreation.  When he was a young boy, the owner of the house in the park would not let Andrew play on the grounds because of his parent's political beliefs.  But anyone can now play in this lovely park and I loved walking through the many trails and seeing moms, dads, and grandparents pushing baby strollers and dog  owners walking their dogs, or vica versa in many cases.

I had a delightful conversation with Molly's owner, who told me how the squirrels would be lacking food this winter because all of the rain has diminished the fruit from the nut trees.

I kind of felt sorry for the little creatures, until I saw a group of youngsters with peanuts in their hands.  Suddenly, out of nowhere, squirrels were lining up, kind of like the Pied Piper of Hamlin, looking for a handout. One squirrel kept following me, standing on his hind legs with his front paws held out, looking for a peanut.  I told him that I had nothing to offer, but he managed to get his prize from a big eyed blond little girl.

I was surprised to find him as I walked along the trail, where I watched him bury the nut and push some leaves overtop to hide the spot.  I had expected him to eat it!  

This guy kind of amused me because he never moved as I walked by.  I would have thought that he was stuffed, except, upon close examination, he blinked.  He must have been hoping for a little something himself.  Now his face is on my blog for everyone to see.

As you can see, the grounds are just stunning with the trees turning color.

I figured that I might as well take as many photos as possible now because with the expected arctic blast in the makings, those leaves aren't going to be there to enjoy too much longer.

 In this park stands a manor home, Pittencrieff house.  This was the birthplace of John Forbes who was the Brigadier General responsible for the withdrawal of the French  from Fort Duquesne during the Revolutionary war.  He was also responsible for  the renaming of the site as Pittsburgh, after his patron, William Pitt.

So, here you have three Scotsman from nearby areas:  Forbes, Carnegie and Pitt, all whom made great strides in the Pittsburgh area of our country.    Truly fascinating, don't you think?

And that concludes my lesson on Andrew Carnegie. I hope that you enjoyed the synopsis as much as I enjoyed sharing it with you.