Interview with Stentor Danielson

Belt talks to Stentor Danielson, author of Pittsburgh in 50 Maps

In this book's introduction, you say, "every map tells a story." As the "narrator" of all of these stories, what do you consider your narrative angle?

My overarching storyline in this book is that lots of people care about Pittsburgh, but they care about it in different ways. Mister Rogers said "won't you be my neighbor," and you can't be a good neighbor to someone if you don't understand why they care about the neighborhood. Sometimes that meant making maps showing what the city looks like to specific communities, like Jewish or Indigenous Pittsburghers. Sometimes that meant making maps highlighting particular issues that affect people's lives, like public transit or racial inequality or air pollution. The things people care about can be seen at multiple scales, from expats naming their new hometowns "Pittsburg" all over the country, down to Phil Bacharach's parking space outside the Evergreen Cafe on Penn Ave. I learned a lot of new stories as I worked on this book. For example, I'm not much of a sports fan, but I knew that the Immaculate Reception was important to many people, so I got to dive into the Steelers fandom and get to know why that one play has such enduring importance. So now I can better appreciate something that makes my neighbors care about Pittsburgh.

Tell me about the research for this book. How did you approach it?

Each map required a different sort of research. I have to give huge credit to reporters for various local news outlets such as Public Source, WESA, or CityPaper. Their investigations were massively helpful in providing information and context about particular aspects of the city. Then my task was to figure out how to shed additional light on it through a map. Other times I had to dig through various historical archives in search of particular information, such as the trolley diagrams from the 1950s that I then mapped out next to the present-day T and Amtrak routes. The most in-depth primary research I did was for the map of the "Pittsburgh left." It's not an official thing—according to the state it's technically illegal—so there's no central database of where you can make a Pittsburgh left. I spent many hours looking at satellite images, street view, and even personally visiting corners to determine whether you might see someone making a Pittsburgh left at each traffic light in the city.

What will surprise readers? What surprised you?

Surprise depends a lot on what you already know about. For example, I personally was surprised to learn that al-Masjid al-Awwal was the first mosque in the US to be founded by a non-immigrants, because Pittsburgh's Muslim community was originally made up mostly of African-Americans who came to the city in the early 20th century. But of course, if you're a Muslim living in the city, that's probably old news to you! I tried to cover a wide variety of topics so that any reader will find something to surprise them, regardless of what their background is. I also tried to bust a few myths—for example, about what the "fourth river" really is (an aquifer running through glacial sediments, not a proper river), or whether Pittsburgh has more bridges than any other city (it doesn't), or whether Andrew Carnegie was a good guy (he wasn't).

You originally got into maps as a child because of the role they play in fantasy novels. In what way can we use map-making to practice world-building in this tangible world?

I think everyone should try making maps of their world. I think it provides a great framework for thinking about the landscape and people around you. How are different places connected to each other? How does some phenomenon look different at different scales, from local to global? What inequalities exist between different places? How much information do we actually have about a topic? What's the best way to communicate information with other people? Making a map will force you to think about all of these sorts of questions in ways you might not have otherwise done.

I had more to say about this topic on the Teaching With Magic podcast.

The maps in this book show (as most maps do) a bird's-eye view of the city. How can they inform life on the ground?

I hope that seeing these maps will encourage people to change how they think about the places they visit every day. Maybe you'll realize that a building you pass without thinking about it is actually a gay bar or a former Catholic church. Maybe you'll gain an appreciation for how lucky you are to live in a neighborhood with higher than average tree cover or be motivated to make change when you see that your neighborhood has fewer trees than others. Maybe you'll start a conversation when you see that your neighbors vote differently than you do. Or maybe you'll go out hunting for hidden dinosaurs around the city!