Point State Park fountain celebrates 50th anniversary

For 50 years, the fountain at Pittsburgh’s Point State Park has welcomed visitors and stood proudly as the heart of the city.

“When you think of Pittsburgh, it is hard not to picture this historic water feature,” said Visit Pittsburgh President and CEO Jerad Bachar. “It’s become an emblem of who we are.”

The completed fountain was turned on for the first time on July 23, 1974 — making this summer its 50th anniversary.

“It stands as a symbol of Pittsburgh’s beauty, our resilience and certainly, our vitality,” Bachar said.

The fountain draws about 1.8 million visitors per year, park manager Jake Weiland said.

According to Matt Galluzo, Riverlife president and CEO, the Point State Park fountain circulates 1.2 million gallons of water every hour, and it shoots as high as 150 feet into the air. Riverlife is a nonprofit organization that celebrates Pittsburgh’s riverfronts.

“This fountain is a marvel,” he said.

A storied history

In 1753, young George Washington influenced the British army to build Fort Prince George at where modern-day Point State Park is located, Weiland said.

“Fort Prince George stood for just two months in the spring of 1754,” he said. “The British surrendered Fort Prince George to the French without firing a single shot.”

The French then turned it into Fort Duquesne to house 250 French soldiers during a siege, Weiland said. But when Gen. John Forbes marched 6,000 soldiers and British allies on the fort in 1758, the French knew they wouldn’t stand a chance by sheer numbers.

Instead, the French burned Fort Duquesne to the ground and escaped by boat, floating down the Ohio River.

On Nov. 27, 1758, Forbes named the land Fort Pitt after Elder William Pitt, first Earl of Chatham, which memorialized Point State Park as the “birthplace of Pittsburgh,” Weiland said.

It was declared a national historic landmark in 1966.

A challenging year

Cindy Adams Dunn, Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources secretary, said the Point State Park fountain has had an interesting year.

“Right before the marathon, we had not one, but two, floods that completely over washed the fountain,” she said, which left mud everywhere and big fish in the fountain.

The situation was “disgusting,” Dunn said, but according to Weiland, the fountain was able to be cleaned in “record time.”

“When that happens, we always have concerns,” Weiland said.

Cleaning out the fountain can take staff weeks — if not months.

“It’s a nightmare, to be honest,” Weiland said.

And it’s not the first time the fountain has been flooded, he said, referencing an incident a few years ago that left the fountain closed for several months.

“This is layers and layers of history represented at The Point,” Dunn said, as Native Americans occupied the land before European settlement. “This fountain is one of the most remarkable pieces of civil engineering in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania.”

She said the enjoys that the fountain draws all kinds of visitors — some more local than others.

‘That’s the best part of the parks — it brings people together,” Dunn said. “It’s one of those uniting features in the landscape of Pennsylvania that’s really remarkable.”

Celebrating 50 years

Catherine Qureshi, Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy president and CEO, is a lifelong Pittsburgher.

“I’ve only ever known a city with this beautiful fountain,” she said, as she’s slightly older than the landmark. “It really is more than just a beautiful feature of our city’s landscape; it’s a symbol of Pittsburgh’s welcoming spirit and our emphasis on the importance of nature and public green space.”

Similar to other fountains located within the Pittsburgh parks system, Qureshi said the Point State Park fountain is a gathering place that is “vibrant, inclusive and full of life.” It’s also become a hot spot for Pittsburgh selfies.

To celebrate the fountain’s 50th anniversary Eat’n Park designed a special commemorative cookie featuring a picture of the fountain, according to Bachar.

Both the office of Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey and Gov. Josh Shapiro issued proclamations in celebration of the fountain’s golden anniversary. Camara Drum and Dance, a West African music group in Pittsburgh, performed ahead of the ceremony as well.

Point State Park has played a prominent role in the region’s travel and tourism industry, Bachar said, and the fountain is being looked at as a possible additional location for the NFL Draft in 2026.

“Every single day — rain or shine — residents and visitors alike bask in the beauty of this park and take their photos in front of this iconic fountain,” he said.