Pirates unveil permanent bronze fan message display at PNC Park

The Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday officially unveiled commemorative bronze displays on the façade of PNC Park located on West General Robinson Street and Mazeroski Way. The bronze panels, 60 in total, adorn more than 10,000 fan messages that were originally displayed on bricks embedded in the sidewalks outside of the ballpark.

The vertical design allows fans to find, view, and photograph these cherished messages and memories more easily. The bronze plaques are also a more durable and sustainable way to display the messages, as the original bricks had to be replaced multiple times since the ballpark opened. As a result, the organization designed a better way to preserve these messages over the long term.

“We know how much these messages and memories mean to our fans,” said Pirates President Travis Williams. “By moving to a vertical bronze display, we are preserving the spirit of the original program in a way that is easier to experience and built to last. The plaques give us a more permanent display to honor these messages and ensure they remain part of the ballpark for generations to come.”

The 60 total panels, which measure approximately five feet in height and six feet in length and weigh approximately 300 pounds each, were manufactured by Pittsburgh-based Matthews International Architectural Products. Each panel is etched with approximately 170 messages and took more than 90 hours to produce.

Each message will be displayed in the original rectangular and square format, with the font size the same as the original messages that were engraved on bricks embedded in the sidewalks around PNC Park. The plaques in all will display more than 10,000 messages that have been with the park since its opening in 2001.

The final design of the bronze plaques was developed by the Pirates and renowned architect and urban planner Janet Marie-Smith and her colleagues at The Canopy Team. The project was developed in coordination with the Pittsburgh Sports and Exhibition Authority and the City of Pittsburgh’s Arts Commission.

Fans who have messages from the original display will be able to locate their message and/or name by year in the same manner as the original program. There are now several bronze QR code plaques added to the façade to make locating the original fan messages easier than ever before. In addition, fans can visit pirates.com/fanmessages to easily locate their messages along the outside of PNC Park.