Hump cut progress looking west along Sixth Avenue from the corner of Garland Alley looking to the Philadelphia Company. The Philadelphia Company was organized in 1884 by inventor George Westinghouse after discovering a large reservoir of natural gas in his backyard on Thomas Boulevard in the North Point Breeze neighborhood of Pittsburgh. The Philadelphia Company expanded rapidly in the area, and it combined with a number of other companies to form the present-day Duquesne Light Company, one of the largest power producers in the United States. The "hump" cut took place in the downtown area known as Grant's Hill. The project began with planning in 1909 and ended with the final cut in 1913. It changed the gradient of Grant Street, Diamond Street, and Oliver, Fifth, Sixth, Webster and Wylie Avenues. Please see Frederick Law Olmstead, Pittsburgh Main Thoroughfares and the Down Town District: http://digital.library.pitt.edu/cgi-bin/t/text/text-idx?c=pitttext&view=toc&idno=00aep1324m for more information.
