Murrysville Tutors

About Murrysville

Just west of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, Murrysville, Pennsylvania is about 17 miles east of Pittsburgh. At the height of the French and Indian War in 1758 General John Forbes led a contingent of British and Colonial troops to recapture the strategic forks of the Ohio River, now Pittsburgh, after military losses by George Washington and Edward Braddock. Tasked with retaking the area now guarded by the French Fort Duquesne, Forbes blazed a new road through the wilderness east of the fort from Fort Ligonier to the confluence of the Ohio, Allegheny and Monongahela rivers. He defeated the French and named the area Pittsburgh after British statesman William Pitt. It was on this road that a young Irish immigrant traveled in 1781, acquiring and selling various merchandise along the way. This peddler, Jeremiah Murry, stopped when he came to Turtle Creek on the southern edge of the town which would eventually bear his name. Murry sold his goods and purchased land on Turtle Creek, walking the 17 miles into Pittsburgh to the Pennsylvania land office to acquire the deed. He built a log cabin on his property and was lucky when the Pennsylvania Turnpike came through the area. He later added a grist mill and saw mill. In 1820, at the age of 61, he founded Murrysville. He died in 1835 but not before leaving behind four daughters, a son and thriving town.

Unknown to Murry was the fact that Murrysville was plotted above one of the largest natural gas deposits in the United States. In 1880 the Haymaker Brothers were drilling for oil when they happened upon the gas. The next year, however, the well caught fire and could not be extinguished. People of the time said the light could be seen for miles around and scientists came from all over the nation to see it. George Dallas Albert, a prominent historian of the day, called it “one of the greatest wonders of the day.” Today, Murrysville is an affluent suburb of Pittsburgh with a median household income exceeding $90,000 a year.

A Murrysville tutor will keep you caught up on your studies so you can take time away from the books to experience the interesting things to do in Murrysville and the surrounding area. With over a 1,000 acres of park land, Murrysville offers a variety of recreational opportunities to its residents. Bear Hollow Park features a half-mile trail which follows a small stream through the woods. Duff Park is a wild plant sanctuary with a 1.5-mile walking trail along Turtle Creek. Lilian Kellman Nature Reserve is a quiet, wooded space in the middle of an otherwise densely populated neighborhood. The Reserve is maintained by the Westmoreland County Conservancy.

It’s just a short drive south to one of the area’s most significant historical sites. Established in 1920, the Bushy Run Battlefield is a historical park on the site of an important battle between the British and several groups of Native Americans after the French and Indian War. Dissatisfied with the treatment of their people, warriors from the Delaware, Shawnee, Mingo and Huron tribes attacked a column of British soldiers who were on their way to relieve troops at Fort Pitt. The battle was a major victory for the British and helped pave the way for more Colonial settlement in western Pennsylvania. Visitors can tour the battlefield as well as view important historical artifacts in the park’s museum. Each year on the anniversary of the battle a reenactment is staged.