Brunot’s Island, Part Two

Photo:  Brunot Island, 1929, with Reed Power Station Under Construction. Duquesne Light Photograph Collection

Brunot Island (or Brunot’s Island) is a 129-acre island located in the Ohio River approximately 1.25 miles from downtown Pittsburgh. It was named for Dr. Felix Brunot (1752-1838) who moved to Pittsburgh in 1797. He was a French surgeon who came to America to serve on the medical staff of the Marquis de Lafayette. In later life, Dr. Brunot was known for his experiments with the use of electricity in the treatment of certain illnesses. In 1800 he purchased the island for $2,800, which was then known as Chartier’s or Hamilton Island.

The renowned “air gun” near fatality incident occurred in August 1803 on Brunot’s Island.

Brunot often found it difficult having a country estate in the middle of an ever-changing river. For instance, when a major flood hit the area in 1811, historians say Brunot watched the floodwaters carry away his corncrib. So Brunot sold the island in 1819, and it continued to be used as farmland for decades. But in 1894 it was bought by George Westinghouse and within a decade a small electrical plant was constructed there.

At the turn of the 20th century, a mile-long dirt racetrack was built, first for racing horses, then automobiles. But the power plant’s growth in the 1920s and 1930s ultimately consumed the island. By the 1970s, much of the plant was removed or mothballed, but the remaining facility still handles periods of “peak-demand.”

Today, a railroad bridge bisects the island and provides its sole connection to the rest of Pittsburgh. There is no other access except by boat. From across the Ohio, its interior is a mystery – trees shroud much of its shoreline, and the island is rarely visited except by occasional power plant workers or curious boaters.