Andrew Carnegie Museum

T.S. Eliot believes, “home is where you start from”. Though a lauded poet, fairly so, Eliot is mistaken in his beliefs. Eliot was born in Saint Louis, Missouri, but eventually gave up his American citizenship and traded it in for a British one. He of all people should understand that home is not where you begin, but where your heart lies. I consider a city to be my home, a city of black and gold, of rivers and bridges. About a fifteen-minute drive from my family’s house in the suburbs, Pittsburgh is home to me. I have spent abundant time downtown, downtown. Driving across the Fort Pitt Bridge, on your left, past the confluence where two rivers become one and you observe in huge red letters, “CARNEGIE”. Rather than indulging your interest,

Connected to this massive structure is the Carnegie Museum of Art, filled with valuable works by artists such as Van Gogh and Picasso. Continuing your excursion, you gaze into the distance a little further and see a school. No, not the University of Pittsburgh, but Carnegie Mellon University. At this point, it cannot simply be dismissed as coincidence, but who is this Carnegie that surrounds you wherever you travel?

Background

Named after his grandfather, Andrew Carnegie was born in the year 1835 in the quaint town of Dunfermline, Scotland. As a young boy, Carnegie immigrated to the United States and ended up in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, a rapidly growing industrial town. Though it might have been a while before Carnegie returned to his country of birth, the lessons he learned at a young age would never be forgotten, nor the memories dissipate. Continuing his life in western Pennsylvania, Carnegie worked his first job at thirteen years of age. He was employed as a bobbin boy, working twelve hours per day, seven days of the week; delivering thread to women laboring

Lauder helped raise Carnegie in his time of need when his parents were unable to afford necessities such as food or clothing. He knew that helping Carnegie through the uncontrollable poverty in his life was simply the right action to take. He could not stand idly by and watch his own blood starve. However, Lauder was much deeper than caring only about his family and those close to him; he also knew the importance of helping all those who you are feasibly able to. He also showed the young boy that there is more than one way to contribute. Not only was money needed to help the impoverished, but also time can help equally well. Whether it be five minutes or five hours, every little bit of time helps. Lastly, Carnegie’s uncle was able to teach him one final lesson. Lauder taught Carnegie about history, global and local. He had some formal education in Dunfermline, where he was clearly one of the most intelligent in his class, little would compare to the tome he had with his uncle. The stories of Genghis Khan, Vlad the Impaler, Rob Roy, and William Wallace captured Carnegie’s imagination. This was the first teacher Carnegie had, but he would not forget it for the rest of his life. He taught Carnegie the importance of education or otherwise. Education is one of the pillars of Carnegie’s giving; in the schools, libraries, and scholarships, this is easily