Auto Row: (Baum Blvd. and Beatty St.)

Looking east from the corner of Baum and Beatty, this photo shows a 1937 street view of central East Liberty. In the early twentieth century, the neighborhood experienced a transformation into a booming commercial district. East Liberty’s population exploded as people were drawn by its many job opportunities. Automobile culture was on the rise, and by 1906, the East End had a total of twelve auto dealers selling thirty-two makes of cars. Baum Boulevard was known as "Automobile Row." In the early 1900s social clubs were popular, and this photograph shows that Pittsburgh’s AAA Auto Club was located right across the street from Motor Square Garden. Traffic became an increasing problem in the mid 1900s. East Liberty had developed as a streetcar suburb and its streets were not designed to accommodate a high volume of cars.

Sources:

Collins, John Fulton Stuart. Stringtown on the Pike: Tales and History of East Liberty and the East Liberty Valley of Pennsylvania. East Liberty Chamber of Commerce, Pittsburgh, 1966.

U.S. Census Bureau. Population and Housing Reports, 1900-1930. Accessed April 18, 2019 at https://www.census.gov/prod/www/decennial.html