Objects can be like keys to the past. Things we decide to keep can be valuable reminders, clues to important as well as personal bits of history. In this documentary special, WQED producer Rick Sebak takes a look at 17 objects that together illustrate a timeline of Pittsburgh from the Fort Pitt Blockhouse to the Three Rivers Bike Racks that are now familiar parts of the city. Some of the objects, like an 18th-century powder horn, a silver tray, and many pieces of rare and beautiful local glass are in museums now. Others like duckpins and Heinz pickle pins and J&L Steel badges are more common but no less interesting. So, we shake a Green Weenie, taste a skinless wiener, and talk about Fort Pitt Beer. We see where a trolley token is still appreciated, and we play with a toy that reminds us of Mister Rogers. There's a rare African-American doll from the 1940s, and a mausoleum key that may outlive us all. It's a fast and often playful look at a few things around here that tell us something about our region.

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