July 12, 2002, Homestead bridge renamed after Grays. By Natalie Neysa Alund, originally appeared on zwired.com.

So long Homestead High Level Bridge, hello Homestead Grays Bridge. Yesterday, Allegheny County and Homestead dignitaries signed legislation to officially change the name of the 3,000-foot, sky-blue bridge that connects Homestead to Greenfield and crosses the Monogahela River.

The Homestead Grays were an all-black baseball team, part of the Negro National League, that began in the 1920s in Homestead when people of color were prohibited from playing in the major leagues.

The Grays brought "pride and national attention" to its Western Pennsylvania hometown for nearly four decades, Homestead council President Evan Baker said, and renaming the bridge in the team's honor looks good for the borough. "(The renaming) helps us because we are trying to revitalize not only The Waterfront, but all of Homestead," Baker added.

Cumberland Posey, a former Grays player who became the team's manager in 1916, owned the Homestead team in the early 1920s and led the Grays to nine Negro National League championships, said the council president, who's also Posey's great-nephew. "It's important that the league and its contributions aren't forgotten," Baker stressed.

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