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The Whole State of Pennsylvania and Really the Southern Half of New Jersey count on Philadelphia as being The "Big City"
Um yeah... this is simply not true. The western half of PA does not give two hoots about Philly and would likely not even notice if it happened to fall into the Atlantic Ocean.
Um yeah... this is simply not true. The western half of PA does not give two hoots about Philly and would likely not even notice if it happened to fall into the Atlantic Ocean.
Oh give it a rest. Pennsylvania would be all-but-irrelevant without Philadelphia, as much as it pains any "Yinzer" to admit that.
The rest of the state could learn a thing or two about remaining relevant from Southeast PA. But I'll leave it at that.
Um yeah... this is simply not true. The western half of PA does not give two hoots about Philly and would likely not even notice if it happened to fall into the Atlantic Ocean.
Are you kidding? They'd not only notice, they'd burst your eardrums from cheering so loudly. At least, they would have when I lived there, in the 1980s and 1990s. My job took me to a whole bunch of places around Pennsylvania, and when I'd tell the people that I was meeting with that I was from Philadelphia, they would invariably launch into a tirade about how horrible that city was and how much they hated it. Thankfully, they were nice enough to not hate me, personally (well, most of them were), but their disdain of the state's largest city was overwhelmingly palpable.
Oh give it a rest. Pennsylvania would be all-but-irrelevant without Philadelphia, as much as it pains any "Yinzer" to admit that.
The rest of the state could learn a thing or two about remaining relevant from Southeast PA. But I'll leave it at that.
I can count one hand the number of times I"ve heard Philly brought up in and around Pittsburgh. Once when the Phillies were in town and another when someone from Pittsburgh had gone away to one of the colleges over there.
Philadelphia has faced MUCH stiffer competition for primacy in PA with Pittsburgh than NYC or Los Angeles have with any other city in their states.
Pittsburgh was the dominant (per capita) Pennsylvania corporate HQ city for almost all of the 20th century.
I can count one hand the number of times I"ve heard Philly brought up in and around Pittsburgh. Once when the Phillies were in town and another when someone from Pittsburgh had gone away to one of the colleges over there.
Philadelphia has faced MUCH stiffer competition for primacy in PA with Pittsburgh than NYC or Los Angeles have with any other city in their states.
Pittsburgh was the dominant (per capita) Pennsylvania corporate HQ city for almost all of the 20th century.
Didn't mean to slight Pittsburgh, as of course it's a prominent city as well that ensures relevance for PA, and Western PA in particular. But Philadelphia has long laid claim to primacy in Pennsylvania, since the state's founding.
The fact that Philly's metro area is nearly three times as large as Pittsburgh's and is centrally located in the nationally critical Northast Corridor has only further cemented that fact.
I love Pittsburgh, and it's a fantastic mid-sized city, but Philadelphia is where Pennsylvania began and is indisputably the Alpha of the state (I'd also argue that the Bay Area is much more competitive with LA than Pittsburgh is with Philadelphia for primacy).
Quote:
Originally Posted by bus man
. Thankfully, they were nice enough to not hate me, personally (well, most of them were), but their disdain of the state's largest city was overwhelmingly palpable.
Ironically, I'd venture to say most Pennsylvanians west and north of Harrisburg have never even been to Philadelphia, so their disdain is to be taken with mounds of salt. I love Pennsylvania's many charms, but its provincialism can be maddening.
Didn't mean to slight Pittsburgh, as of course it's a prominent city as well that ensures relevance for PA, and Western PA in particular. But Philadelphia has long laid claim to primacy in Pennsylvania, since the state's founding.
The fact that Philly's metro area is nearly three times as large as Pittsburgh's and is centrally located in the nationally critical Northast Corridor has only further cemented that fact.
I love Pittsburgh, and it's a fantastic mid-sized city, but Philadelphia is where Pennsylvania began and is indisputably the Alpha of the state (I'd also argue that the Bay Area is much more competitive with LA than Pittsburgh is with Philadelphia for primacy).
Ironically, I'd venture to say most Pennsylvanians west and north of Harrisburg have never even been to Philadelphia, so their disdain is to be taken with mounds of salt. I love Pennsylvania's many charms, but its provincialism can be maddening.
I think there was a time when that was less the case than it is now.
When Pittsburgh really was the Steel City, its population was double what it is now, and the metropolitan area was also more populous (it and Buffalo are among the few US metros to have lost population at the metro level since 1980). Given the prominence of the steel industry and of the companies headquartered in Pittsburgh.
I have been made aware, however, that one of the first questions Pittsburghers ask about a candidate for elected office is "Is he from Pittsburgh?"
Um yeah... this is simply not true. The western half of PA does not give two hoots about Philly and would likely not even notice if it happened to fall into the Atlantic Ocean.
They would notice after the PA economy goes down the toilet. If the 5 county Philadelphia region left the state, then PA loses 1/3 of its residents and over 1/3 of its economy...how does a state recover from that? I would feel bad for Pittsburgh being stuck with a mess it can't fix.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Losfrisco
I can count one hand the number of times I"ve heard Philly brought up in and around Pittsburgh. Once when the Phillies were in town and another when someone from Pittsburgh had gone away to one of the colleges over there.
Philadelphia has faced MUCH stiffer competition for primacy in PA with Pittsburgh than NYC or Los Angeles have with any other city in their states.
Pittsburgh was the dominant (per capita) Pennsylvania corporate HQ city for almost all of the 20th century.
Not really. Pittsburgh is a wonderful city, but its a mid sized city in a mid-sized metro.
Philadelphia and its PA suburbs are the the most dominant economic force in the state and the only part of the state that is poised to grow at a healthy rate in the coming years and decades. (along with Lehigh Valley and Lancaster County).
While PA does have two main cities, I have never heard or read about anyone that claimed Pittsburgh is a threat to Philadelphia's dominance, at least not since before 1900.
I will say that Pittsburgh is certainly a major economic center and punches above a city for its size, but its not in the same economic league as Philadelphia, especially when factoring in the suburbs. The Philadelphia suburbs are also a major economic force, the Pittsburgh suburbs are largely not.
While PA does have two main cities, I have never heard or read about anyone that claimed Pittsburgh is a threat to Philadelphia's dominance, at least not since before 1900.
"Recession-weary Pittsburgh held its distinction as the nation's third largest corporate headquarters city last year."
also
"Pittsburgh and Los Angeles each had four of the 50 largest companies, second behind New York with seven."
Article is from 1983, and I don't see a single mention of Philadelphia anywhere.
Pittsburgh has always punched above its weight as a major corporate hub--no debate there.
Philadelphia by contrast lost many corporate HQs via relocation or acquisitions over the years, but it's always had a very robust homegrown small business community in which the whole is the sum of its many parts.
Pittsburgh has always punched above its weight as a major corporate hub--no debate there.
Philadelphia by contrast lost many corporate HQs via relocation or acquisitions over the years, but it's always had a very robust homegrown small business community in which the whole is the sum of its many parts.
This is somewhat like saying "yeah no doubt the Steelers punch above their weight as an NFL franchise."
They were the heavyweight. Steel production, corporate hq jobs, stockholders, etc.
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