Yes, yes I have. Philly in particular when they were closing down a DuPont plant there.
The once Italian neighborhoods were already turning into black slums but not as bad as today.
My old first line supervisor used to live there and I helped him move his mom out and into his home here.
Damn, that woman could cook! Her granddaughter runs a Eyeglass Factory in town and she is a hell of a cook too. Grandma moved in just at the right time I guess.
It was funny, we got a bunch of supervisors from Philly, all Italian-Americans and they all bought homes in town almost within sight of each other. I loved getting invited to their get-togethers.
They did not take any shit either and gave the local tough guys a run for their money. The plant manager bailed more than one of them out of jail on several occasions. They lamented the lack of a neighborhood bar.
Pittsburg was just starting it's downhill slide when I had to spend some time there but even then I can't say it was anything approaching nice.....Looked old and worn out. It reminded me of the neighborhoods in The Deer Hunter to a T.