Part of 837 Named for Civil-Rights Leader

By Staff Reports
The Tube City Almanac
September 24, 2021
Posted in: Announcements, Duquesne News

Members of Clifton Pitts’ family and local officials join state Rep. Austin Davis and state Sen. Jim Brewster during a ceremony to celebrate the designation of a portion of Route 837 as the “Clifton P. Pitts Memorial Highway.” (Submitted photo courtesy state Rep. Austin Davis)

A portion of state Route 837 in Duquesne and West Mifflin has been renamed to honor the late Clifton P. Pitts.

Local, county and state officials gathered Friday morning at Macedonia Baptist Church to dedicate part of the road as the Clifton P. Pitts Memorial Highway. Pitts died in November 2020 of complications of COVID-19. He was 76.

Pitts was born in Pittsburgh but grew up in Duquesne. In the 1970s, Pitts worked as a community activist throughout the Mon Valley, working for a local anti-poverty campaign and also volunteering his time to fight segregation and racial discrimination, and to encourage Black residents to register to vote and run for local offices.

Beginning in the 1980s, Pitts served as vice-chair of the Mon Valley People’s Action Committee, a group of concerned Black community and political leaders.

He also served as president of the Duquesne-West Mifflin branch of the NAACP and the Western Pennsylvania Black Political Assembly. During the decline of the steel industry, Pitts spent 21 years working as Allegheny County’s director of job replacement for Allegheny County and also served as director of the Mon-Yough Action Program and the Help Initiate Pride program.

Friday’s ceremony was attended by members of Pitts’ family, state Sen. Jim Brewster, state Sen. Jay Costa, state Rep. Austin Davis, Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald and Duquesne Mayor Nickole Nesby.

“Clifton Pitts was an influential trailblazer in the Mon Valley who not only fought to improve the lives of everyone he met, but also inspired many people, like myself, to follow his lead in dedicating their time and talents to serving others,” said Davis, who introduced the legislation to establish the section of Route 837 between Center Street and Hoffman Boulevard as the Clifton P. Pitts Memorial Highway.

Davis said he hopes that residents will “remember and reflect on Mr. Pitts’ legacy.”

Brewster said Pitts “dared to serve, even in the face of adversity” and called it “an honor” to help dedicate the memorial.

“Clifton Pitts dedicated himself to making the Mon Valley a better place for all as a well-known and respected community leader,” he said.

Pitts left an “extraordinary’ legacy of “hard work (and) leadership,” said Costa, adding, “he worked every day to create the world that he wanted to see for himself and for future generations, and I am proud to join in the commemoration of this memorial highway in his honor.”

(Submitted photo courtesy state Rep. Austin Davis)

Editor’s Note: This story was written from press releases and file clippings.

Originally published September 24, 2021.

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