Lower Lawrenceville in Pittsburgh in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

Pittsburgh Grease Plant

Photographed by Mike Wintermantel, March 13, 2011

1. Pittsburgh Grease Plant Marker

Inscription. Long a major producer of lubricating grease for industry, transportation, and the military. In WW II, supplied 5,000,000 pounds of “Eisenhower grease,” vital to the war effort. Founded here in 1885, by Grant McCargo. After 1929, part of Standard Oil (NJ); operated until 1999.

Erected 2000 by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • War, World II. In addition, it is included in the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1885.

Location. 40° 27.761′ N, 79° 58.144′ W. Marker is in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in Allegheny County. It is in Lower Lawrenceville. It is on Smallman Street 0.1 miles east of 33rd Street, on the right when traveling west. Located in front of General Tire Service in the Strip District of Pittsburgh. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 3301 Smallman Street, Pittsburgh PA 15201, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the American Northeast,

in the Mid-Atlantic,

in the Ohio River Valley,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Northern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Viceroyalty of New France,

the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

and one of the original Thirteen Colonies.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Birthplace of the Aluminum Industry (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Pat the Avenger Returns Fire (about 600 feet away); Charles Martin Hall (about 600 feet away);

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

Pittsburgh Brewing Company (approx. 0.2 miles away); St. John the Baptist Roman Catholic Church (approx. ¼ mile away); St. Francis Medical Center Cross and Doors (approx. 0.3 miles away); St. Francis Hospital (approx. 0.3 miles away); Stephen C. Foster (approx. 0.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Pittsburgh.

Also see . . . Pittsburgh Grease Plant - Behind the Marker. Explore PA History website entry (Submitted on March 15, 2011, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.)

Photographed by Mike Wintermantel, March 13, 2011

2. Pittsburgh Grease Plant Marker

Looking west on Smallman Street

Credits. This page was last revised on May 28, 2025. It was originally submitted on March 14, 2011, by Mike Wintermantel of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 1,733 times since then and 44 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 14, 2011, by Mike Wintermantel of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.