Brookline (Pittsburgh)

Brookline is a neighborhood in the South Hills of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Its name is from a town in Massachusetts; early settlers felt that it bore a resemblance to the place in Massachusetts.

Early settlement
Brookline was a part of the larger West Liberty Borough before its absorption into Pittsburgh in 1908. Early in its history, the area was mostly inhabited by miners and farmers. At the turn of the century when the mining industry in the area declined, only farms were left.

Dawn of the 20th century
The dawn of the 20th century brought many technological advances which helped the South Hills of Pittsburgh flourish. First, the transportation of coal from the area allowed the Pittsburgh & Castle Shannon Railroad Co. to install lines going to the area. That included a tunnel being bored from downtown Pittsburgh, through Mt. Washington exiting directly above South Hills Junction. With the age of automobiles looming, a few decades later the Liberty Tunnel was completed which helped create a boom in the South Hills areas.

Trolley service
Brookline was linked by streetcar to downtown Pittsburgh in 1905 by Pittsburgh Railways who built a single line south along West Liberty Avenue. It turns east on a private right of way and follows Brookline Boulevard to Saw Mill Run. The initial line was cut back to Edgebrook Avenue a year later, but in 1909 the track was doubled and a loop put in near the end of Witt Street. In 1915 the line was extended south along West Liberty Avenue to Dormont where it linked with the 42 Dormont line. The 39 Brookline service closed in 1966.

Surrounding communities
Brookline has seven borders including the Pittsburgh neighborhoods of Beechview to the northwest, Bon Air to the northeast, Carrick to the east, Overbrook to the southeast, Baldwin Township to the south, Mt. Lebanon to the southwest and Dormont to the west.