John Heinz History Center - Pittsburgh, PA

The Senator John Heinz History Center, located in the historic Strip District is Pennsylvania’s largest history museum. They have been an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution since 2000.

We spent many hours in this history center. We started at the top floor and worked our way down. We saw exhibits such as The Legacy of Fred Rogers – Mr. Rogers Neighborhood, History of Pittsburgh, vintage streetcars, Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum, American Democracy: A Great Leap of Faith, Heinz, We Can Do It! WWII, From Slavery to Freedom, Glass and so much more.

For more information on the Heinz History Center, click HERE.

Located at: 1212 Smallman St, Pittsburgh, PA 15222

Some of our favorites:

The Legacy of Fred Rogers – Mr. Rogers Neighborhood

Don’t miss your chance to see the original set from Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, which is on long-term public display along with several artifacts from his show. There is a lifelike figure of Mister Rogers as part of the Special Collections Gallery on the History Center’s fourth floor. View his sweaters, shoes, puppets and much more.

Heinz Ketchup exhibit

We really liked the famous Heinz Ketchup exhibit, it was full of facts along with the history of the company and we were even able to see some old commercials on old TV sets. They also had a display of Heinz bottles, cans and boxed items

Glass: Shattering Notions

One of the premier regional collections of glass known, the Shattering Notions exhibit, features more than 500 glass objects, immersive environments, hands-on interactives, and audio and video to help you look at, not through the glass in your life and hopefully see and understand it in a new way.

Sports Museum exhibit

The Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum is a dynamic museum located inside the Heinz History Center. Enjoy a stunning collection of sports artifacts and more than 70 interactive activities that celebrate the rich tradition of sports in the Pittsburgh region, from baseball, boxing, hockey to football.

Photos from other displays