O'Hara, Fox Chapel residents can weigh in on name change for Squaw Run

O’Hara and Fox Chapel are set to launch the compilation of a joint comprehensive plan, part of which will include the renaming of Squaw Run.

A tributary of the Allegheny River, the stream runs through O’Hara, Fox Chapel and Indiana Township.

While local municipalities voted to rename parks and roads with the name “Squaw” after the word was recognized as a slur against Native American women, the waterway has retained its name largely because that process requires approval by several government entities.

Fox Chapel Councilwoman Mandy Steele said a joint comprehensive plan is the perfect time to engage residents in the renaming initiative.

“It is a process to involve community members in the vision for the community,” she said. “There will be multiple opportunities for public input on a variety of issues and the new stream name will be included in that list.”

Just last week, federal officials released a plan to drop the word “Squaw” from hundreds of geographic locations in three dozen states.

This comes after U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland in November formally declared the term derogatory and initiated a process to remove the word from use by the federal government.

Haaland said in a statement that words matter, and the agency will work to make the nation’s public lands and waters welcoming to people of all backgrounds.

In 2020, O’Hara council ditched the word “Squaw” and changed the name of a park to O’Hara Township Community Park. Fox Chapel council changed the names of two roads in 2021.

Fox Chapel Manager Gary Koehler said it is too early to comment on the stream renaming process but, as the public phase of the comprehensive plan kicks off, “we will know more.”

O’Hara Manager Julie Jakubec could not be reached for comment.

For Steele, the stream renaming is the culmination of several years working toward ridding the word from local place names. Steele was among those who spearheaded the effort to change the name of one of Fox Chapel’s main roads from Squaw Run to Hemlock Hollow.

She said the public input portion of the process provides a chance for thoughtful debate.

“The guidance received from the Native American community has been to honor nature in the replacement name,” Steele said. “Our residents are thoughtful and creative and I know we can find a fitting name that is worthy of such a beautiful waterway.”