Originally known, simply as "Allegheny" due to their home ballpark being in adjacent Allegheny City, Pennsylvania the club eventually moved across the Allegheny River to Pittsburgh in 1887 where they were re-named the Pittsburgh Alleghenys.
Following a season in 1890 in which the Alleghenys went 23-113 the team controversially signed Lou Bierbauer, a player whom the Philadelphia Athletics (of the American Association) considered to be on their roster. The Athletics filed an official complaint calling the team's actions "piratical", the local press loved the accuastion and attached it to stories about the team and thus, the Pittsburgh Pirates were born.
Like most teams of the day, the Pirates originally used navy blue and red as their official colour scheme, however in 1948 the team switched to black and gold with a gold P on a black cap, a colour scheme and cap the Pirates still use to this day.
