Information AboutBrier Hill |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT BRIER HILL | |
| neighborhoods in youngstown, ohio | |
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Like many urban neighborhoods, however, Brier Hill faces an uncertain future. Beginning in the 1950s, large swaths of the neighborhood were razed to make way for urban renewal projects, including the building of modern Expressways . Brier Hill was further depopulated by economic dislocations that came with the decline, and eventual collapse, of Youngstown's steel industry. Today, all that remains of a once-vibrant ethnic enclave is the ITAM Post (Italian-American War Veterans' Club), the Bandstand , Modarelli's Salumeria, and the memorial wall. EARLY HISTORY The area encompassing the Brier Hill neighborhood was originally owned by Youngstown Industrialist George Tod, who established a farm on the district's brier-covered hills around 1801. Tod called the agricultural enterprise Brier Hill. This semi-rural area was transformed irrevocably when coal was discovered in the hills in and around Brier Hill. The district drew thousands of immigrants seeking work in the mines, and Brier Hill became Youngstown's oldest Working-class neighborhood. The first iron furnace in the district was opened by the Tod family in 1847. By the 1880s, Blast Furnaces and Rolling Mills were established in close proximity to the Coal Mines , a practical arrangement, given that Brier Hill mines provided coal for the mills. The surrounding neighborhood grew in tandem, as more housing was built for miners, iron workers, and their families. By the opening of the 20th century, the rapid expansion of the Industry in Brier Hill had turned the area into the main entry point for Youngstown's Immigrants . The largest groups were Italians , Welsh , Irish , Germans , and African Americans . Given its relative isolation from Downtown Youngstown , Brier Hill developed independently and established its own schools, post office, and churches. The district remained an unincorporated village (outside of Youngstown Township) until 1900, when it was absorbed by the city. OTHER ITALIAN ENCLAVES Although Youngstown had many areas and sections that were distinctly Italian/Italian-American such as Smoky Hollow , the lower-East Side, East Youngstown (now Campbell ), Struthers , and Lowellville ; Brier Hill was most recognized as the unofficial Little Italy . THE PIZZA
NEIGHBORHOOD PROGRESS Local activists from the Pro-Yo Party and the ITAM (Post 12) are working to make Brier Hill a Sister-City/"Cugin" Community of San Pietro Avellana ( Isernia ). San Pietro is a small village in the Apennine hills of Southeastern Italy where many Italian-American s in the Youngstown-area originated. NOTABLE RESIDENTS
SEE ALSO Youngstown Neighborhoods Other Italian Neighborhoods in NE Ohio: EXTERNAL LINKS |
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