1320: The H in Pittsburgh Jul 23, 2018

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For 20 years, between 1891 and 1911, the city of Pittsburgh, PA was spelt as Pittsburg. Originally named by Gen. William Forbes, a Scotsman after William Pitt, he opted for the Scottish variant of the English 'borough' or German 'burg'. At this time it would have been pronounced as /pɪtsbərə/, following the pattern of 'Edinburgh', but due to association with the far more common '-burg' this changed to what it is now. However, to standardize the many variants for cities over the United States named by various ethnic groups, the United States Board on Geographic Names was established and decreed that the spelling would be 'Pittsburg' to keep in line with the rest of the many German-based names for cities. The change had limited effect on unofficial proceedings, and in 1911 was changed back.

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