Guide to the Melvin Seidenberg Photographs, c. 1828-1988

Arrangement

Repository
Heinz History Center
Title
Melvin Seidenberg Photographs,
Creator
Seidenberg, Melvin, 1915-2003
Collection Number
MSP#566
Extent
3.75 linear feet linear feet (8 boxes)
Date
c. 1828-1988
Abstract
Melvin Seidenberg and his wife Elenore moved to Pittsburgh in 1946 after he received an offer of employment from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette to cover general assignments. In 1962, Seidenberg accepted a community relations position with the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and later accepted a position with the Port Authority of Allegheny County (PAT), from which he retired in 1985. The Melvin Seidenberg photographs include prints, negatives, slides and transparencies which correspond with Seidenberg's papers, research, and writings. The photographs contain images documenting Renaissance I, the history of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, housing, urban planning, redevelopment, and transportation. There are also a few images of Seidenberg, his family, friends, and colleagues.
Language
The material in this collection is in English.
Author
The guide to this collection was written by Theresa E. Rea.
Sponsor
The processing of this collection was underwritten by the PNC Charitable Trusts- J. Samuel and Rose Y. Cox Foundation, Giant Eagle Foundation, and the Heinz History Center. For information concerning sponsorship, contact the Director of the Library and Archives.
Publisher
Heinz History Center
Address
1212 Smallman St.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222
library@heinzhistorycenter.org
URL: https://www.heinzhistorycenter.org

History

Born in 1915 to Polish and Russian Jewish immigrants in Pueblo, Colorado, Melvin Seidenberg attended the University of Oklahoma for two years and worked for a newspaper in Oklahoma before returning to Pueblo in 1936. After his return, he was employed as a reporter and assistant sports editor for the Pueblo Chieftain. In 1942, Seidenberg enlisted in the United States Navy. He was stationed at Pearl Harbor as a medical orderly and transferred to Washington D.C., during the last year of the war. There he wrote news releases and marine combat correspondence for the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery. It was during that time he met his future wife Elenore Ullman. They were married in 1945. They later had three children: Daniel in 1952, Willa in 1956, and Julie in 1961.

In 1946, Seidenberg was hired by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for general assignments and also to cover real estate and urban affairs. About 1950, Pittsburgh became the first major city to undertake a modern urban-renewal program. A large section of downtown was demolished and converted into parks, office buildings, and a sports arena. Seidenberg chronicled many facets of the renewal program.

While on the editorial staff for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Seidenberg co-edited A Pittsburgh Album 1758-1958: Two Hundred Years of Memories in Pictures and Text with Roy Stryker. He was credited with giving the Fort Duquesne Bridge the name that lives on in Pittsburgh's lore "The Bridge to Nowhere." Seidenberg also created a chronology of the two hundred year history of Pittsburgh for Stefan Lorant's book Pittsburgh: The Story of an American City, published in 1964.

Seidenberg left the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 1962 and worked for the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh (URA). He set up a department of community affairs within the URA and wrote speeches, statements, articles, brochures, etc., for promoting URA projects and creating liaisons with neighborhoods. Seidenberg had an interest in housing and housing discrimination in the area neighborhoods and wrote about housing inequalities. He also covered community affairs and other social issues, including social planning aspects on communities and social problems in urban renewal.

With support from the URA, Seidenberg played a role in establishing Urban Youth Action, Inc., (UYA) in the Hill District in 1966. Founded by Bernard H. Jones, Sr., the organization stresses community service, education, and job training to help young people to develop positive life and leadership skills. For his contributions to the UYA, Seidenberg was later named an honorary board member.

About 1970, Seidenberg left the Urban Redevelopment Authority and took a position writing for the Port Authority of Allegheny County (PAT). After his retirement in 1985, Seidenberg continued to do some spotting for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was part of the statistics crew for approximately fifteen years. Both Seidenberg and his wife were active and supporters of many groups in Pittsburgh including the League of Women Voters, Thomas Merton Center, and WDUQ public radio. He volunteered and continued to do some writing and consulting for organizations, such as League of Women Voters, UYA, URA and PAT, until his death in 2003.

Scope and Content Notes

Melvin Seidenberg Photographs consist of eight of archival boxes which are arranged in three series according to medium. The series designations are as follows: Prints, Negatives, and Slides/Transparencies. Many of the images are repeated in each series. The photographs complement much of the research and work that Seidenberg did during his career.

Conditions Governing Access

No access restrictions. The Senator John Heinz History Center does not own reproduction rights to all of the material in this collection. All responsibility for questions of copyright is assumed by the user.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Elenore Seidenberg, wife of Melvin Seidenberg on August 14, 2008.

Preferred Citation

Melvin Seidenberg Photographs, c. 1828-1988, MSP#566, Rauh Jewish Archives, Library and Archives Division, Senator John Heinz History Center

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Theresa E. Rea in October 2010.

Conditions Governing Use

Property rights reside with the Senator John Heinz History Center. Literary rights are retained by the creators of the records and their heirs. For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the Library and Archives of the Senator John Heinz History Center.

Separated Materials

The Melvin Seidenberg Papers have been separated, arranged, and described with the catalog designation of MSS#566.

The Melvin Seidenberg Oversize Papers have been separated, arranged, and described with the catalog designation of MSO#566.

The Melvin Seidenberg Oversize Photographs have been separated, arranged, and described with the catalog designation of MSR#566.

To the library: For the full list of publications transferred to the library, please refer to the compiled list located in the donor file.

To the museum: Pirates plastic bank, sponsor PN Bank (Pittsburgh National Bank), Tile of the Fort Pitt Tunnel, coin

To the Programs Collection:

  1. Pitt vs Penn State November 27, 1958
  2. Pittsburgh Pirates Program/Yearbook-World Champions-1961
  3. Steelers vs New York Giants August 20, 1970
  4. Steelers vs Washington Redskins September 9, 1972
  5. Steelers vs Baltimore Colts September 15, 1974
  6. Steelers vs Cleveland Browns September 19, 1976
  7. Steelers vs Houston Oilers October 23, 1977
  8. Steelers vs Cincinnati Bengals September 19, 1982

Subjects

    Corporate Names

    • Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
    • Urban Redevelopment Authority.
    • Urban Youth Action, Inc.
    • Port Authority of Allegheny County.
    • Pittsburgh Railway Company.
    • Pittsburgh Motor Coach Company.
    • Irene Kaufmann Settlement.

    Personal Names

    • Seidenberg, Melvin, 1915-2003
    • Seidenberg, Elenore Ullman, c. 1925-
    • Alexander, Edward
    • Ash, Leo
    • Schwartz, Charles
    • Wallace, Bryce
    • Teller, Sidney
    • Kaufmann, Henry
    • Earhart, Amelia, 1897-1937
    • Eisenhower, Dwight, 1890-1969
    • Farley, James, 1888-1976
    • Fisher, John S., 1867-1940
    • Herbert, Victor, 1859-1924
    • Hood, C. F.
    • Lewis, John L. 1880-1969
    • McDonald, David J., 1902-1979
    • Mercer, Hugh, 1726-1777
    • Mitch, William
    • Murray, Philip, 1886-1930
    • Negley, James S., 1826-1901
    • Perry, J.L.
    • Thaden, Louise McPhetridge, 1905-1979
    • Roosevelt, Franklin D., 1882-1945
    • Fritz, Gustav
    • Draemel, Milo
    • Lawrence, David L., 1889-1966
    • Pease, Robert, 1925
    • Arlin, Harold W.
    • Bryan, William Jennings, 1860-1925
    • Cantor, Eddie, 1892-1964
    • Hare, Ernie, 1881-1939
    • Jones, Billy, 1889-1940
    • Vastine, T.J.
    • Beye, William
    • Barr, Joseph M., 1906-1982
    • Mauro, John T.
    • Bittner, Van A., 1885-1949
    • Kelly, Charles, E. 1920-1985
    • Cox, Charles
    • Cox, James R., 1886-1951
    • Baxter, Samuel S.
    • Brewer, John
    • Heintzleman, Walter
    • Wynne, David
    • Salk, Jonas, 1914-1995

    Geographic Names

    • Brookline (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Chartiers Valley (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Dormont, (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Downtown (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • East Liberty (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Garfield, (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Gateway Center (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Highland Park, (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Hill District (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Lower Hill (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Irene Kaufmann Settlement (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Homestead (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Homewood-Brushton (Pittsburgh, Pa)
    • Lawrenceville (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Point State Park (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • North Side (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Oakland (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Polish Hill (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Shadyside (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Sheraden (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Strip District (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • South Side (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    • Woods Run (Pittsburgh, Pa.)

    Other Subjects

    • Urban renewal--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh.
    • Community Development -- Pennsylvania -- Pittsburgh
    • Urban redevelopment -- Pennsylvania -- Pittsburgh.
    • Housing--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh.
    • Allegheny County--Pennsylvania--History.
    • Transportation--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh--Planning.

Container List