A view of Ross Street at Fourth Avenue, looking northeast towards the Bridge of Sighs. The Bridge of Sighs connects the Allegheny County Jail (right) with the Allegheny County Courthouse and was named after the famous bridge of the same name in Venice. This courthouse is actually the third Allegheny County Courthouse to be built in downtown Pittsburgh. The first was built in the Market Square area. In 1841, a new courthouse was built on the site of the present building. On May 7, 1882, this second courthouse was destroyed by fire. County commissioners created a competition and issued letters requesting architects to submit designs for a new courthouse. The winning design was entered by Henry Hobson Richardson. The jail was completed in 1886 and the courthouse was completed two years later. In 1995, the Allegheny County Jail was closed and renovated to become the new home of the Juvenile and Family sections of the Common Pleas Court. The building seen on the right is the County Office Building.
