Help save history in your community by identifying, exploring, and documenting significant places.

"So much can change in the time of one generation. I can't imagine life without a television or what it was really like to work in a steel mill."
—student quote

Saturday Light Brigade Radio Chat Sessions

If family members or neighbors know a lot about a particular place, ask them to talk about what they remember and describe how the place has changed over time. Record their conversations, either by writing down their words or taping your conversations.

On March 2, 2005, students from Arlington Elementary, Bishop Leonard Catholic, Philip Murray Elementary, and Phillips Elementary schools participated in “chat sessions” at the South Side branch of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. They interviewed people who had either lived on the South Side for many years, or who had a family connection to the South Side, or who had helped with the main street revitalization effort. Larry Berger, radio host of The Saturday Light Brigade (WRCT 88.3 FM),” recorded the conversations and produced audio clips for the Main Street Memories section of this website.

Since one of the goals of “Spotlight on Main Street” was to collect and save information about significant buildings on East Carson Street, Larry began each radio chat session by showing students a building he had constructed out of books. He asked each student to imagine a use for that building. For example, a student might have suggested that the building be used as a restaurant. Larry then asked the student to describe the restaurant menu, décor, hours of operation, and kinds of people who might dine there. The restaurant started to become a “real” place in everyone's imagination. When Larry suddenly knocked the building down, everyone felt a sense of loss. This simple exercise demonstrated that all buildings hold memories and are places to be valued, particularly if they are works of art or places where significant events have occurred.

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