Get Nebby in Pittsburgh June 22 & 23

 

DOORS OPEN Pittsburgh, a local nonprofit that hosts immersive tours and neighborhood events focused on regional arts, culture, and history, once again presents its signature Downtown event on Saturday and Sunday, June 22-23.

 

This event invites guests to go behind the scenes within some of Pittsburgh’s most iconic buildings, entering spaces inside those buildings not typically accessible to the public, or just the opportunity to explore inside these amazing buildings.

 

The point of all of this is to celebrate and display Pittsburgh’s diverse architecture and abundant history through the eyes of our buildings.

 

DOORS OPEN Pittsburgh has presented this event since 2016, every October, but decided to offer it in the Spring this year to potentially attract more people.

 

With thirty-two buildings Downtown participating this year, guests can choose any number of buildings they want to visit and then go at their own pace to visit those buildings that sound most intriguing to them. In other words, the event is formatted like an open house.

 

And there will be a variety of buildings to select from: churches, private club, theaters, art galleries, government offices, luxury apartment buildings and hotels, and more.

 

Volunteers and building staff will be on-hand at each building to share information about the architecture and how these buildings became part of our collective history and future, including fun anecdotal information about past inhabitants in some cases.

 

Two long-time participants as well as sponsors for the Downtown event are back again this year. Dollar Bank, the longest-operating bank in Pittsburgh’s financial district also houses an amazing historic center paying homage to that history; and Koppers Inc, a top floor experience with amazing views.

 

New additions to the event this year include the Drury Plaza Hotel and its impressive vault; the private and exclusive Allegheny HYP Club and the Hertz Gateway Center, a crown jewel of architecture during Pittsburgh Renaissances.

For more event information, list of participating buildings and to purchase tickets: CLICK HERE

Housetour: Hoyt Mansions of New Castle PA or 1 plan 2 ways

The mid-west is full of industrial small towns and each has at least a few examples of spectacular mansions from the turn of the last century. New Castle, PA was once home to many different industries and has a rather impressive architectural collection (now rather down-at-heel) but the cream of the crop are two mansions which are currently used as the town's art center.

Designed by local architect Frank Faulke between 1914 and 1917 for Mr & Mrs Alex Hoyt and his sister Ms May Emma Hoyt, the two houses have very similar floorplans but each is in a different style. The brick beaux-arts house pictured here was Ms Hoyt's home until her death in 1962 when it was converted to an art's center and linked with her brother's home next door in 1970 through a glass breezeway.

Her home now functions as an art gallery and classroom space for many art and music classes.  It also has a permanent display of one of the local industries, Shenango and Castleton China, whose factories you once were able to see from upstairs. The house is open free to the public and if you find yourself in New Castle you should definitely pay a visit.

Alex Hoyt's home is now a house museum (seen above) which was unfortunately closed the day of my visit. It's a rather identical house, notice the bay window and porte cochere, except in an Arts and Crafts style (the organization calls it Tudor Revival but I don't agree with that assessment).

The house was being set up for an exhibit the day I wandered around so excuse the mess! Above is the lovely living room with original light fixtures and beautiful oak woodwork.

In the photo above you can see from the center hall, through the living room, and into the added glass breezeway connecting the mansions.

The wood floors are simple oak but detailed in how they are laid: I love how the wood border echoes the shape of the bay window.

The dining room is richly paneled in walnut and features sterling silver hardware.

It looks like a lot of the silver could do with a polish!

The sconces had been polished more recently, look at the luster.

Off the dining room is a small breakfast room now used as a gift shop. To the left of the fireplace above is a small German silver sink inside casework to wash dishes.

Near the front door is Ms Hoyt's library, now the office of the administrator, and features lovely leaded-glass built-in bookcases. Notice the original wallpaper.

The grand oak stair is in the enter of the plan between the living and dining rooms.

At the landing is a leaded and stained glass window above a window seat overlooking the porte cochere.

Glass doors have unfortunately been added at the top of the stairs for fire concerns but still feels open.

The beautiful plaster crown above the stair was recently restored.

As befitting her bequest Ms Hoyt's bedroom is now a large classroom. The windows on the right look down to the distant river and mills, now completely obscured and overgrown.

Each room has slightly different hardware.  I loved the ormolu hardware in the bedroom.

Below is the bedroom view today, the distant break in the trees is the river far below.

Beautifully fitted-out closets in walnut are used to this day. I love the original hardware and interior mirrored doors.

Only age can replicate the finish old hardware acquires.

Shenango pottery and Castleton china was a big deal back at the turn of the century and brought renowned artists from around the world to work on the designs. Part of the 2nd floor of the house is dedicated to the original paintings done by the artists along with examples of their work.

The final designs were painted by the artist on official Shenango Pottery embossed letterhead.

During WWII while Haviland china in Limoge had to stop production, Shenango China stepped in and provided their location and services to keep up production.  The piece below is an example from that time period.

Castleton China produced china for everyone from hotels and the railway to the White House! Below is the birthday china for President Eisenhower from 1953.

Tiffany and Company designed the china produced by Castleton for the Johnson White House in 1968.

The attic, which normally would provide playspace and a nursery for children, was instead used as a ballroom as Ms Hoyt never married. 

The hardware and mirrored doors up here were at the level of the hardware found throughout the house.

The original service bells still are in place in the back stairs.

The kitchen is missing its original cabinetry but still sports the lovely original subway tile.

Ms Hoyt's jewelry safe is still in use in the basement!

When traveling be sure to check out the local museums, even in small towns; they may surprise you!

Read more about the Hoyt Center for the Arts on their website HERE. 

Pittsburgh from above

As long time readers of this blog know that while I've called Washington, DC home for nearly 13 years I'm originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; home to Heinz ketchup, robber barons, Andy Warhol, and Mr. Rogers.

This past labor day weekend I had the chance to play tour-guide for a few friends on a quick trip to the city which is thankfully only a 4 hour drive from DC.  Seeing your 'home' from a visitor's viewpoint is always eye-opening and left me with a new-found appreciation for the city.

After a day spent at Kennywood (a historic and very pretty amusement park set amid gardens) we visited downtown Pittsburgh from above. No not from a helicopter but on one of the 2 remaining funicular's or "inclines" which lead one from the river's edge up to the neighborhood of Mt. Washington overlooking the city. I believe at one time there were 13 of these cars operating along the river, some of which could even carry cars!

We had typical "Pittsburgh weather" as I call it - overcast and drizzly - but the sun was able to breakout a few times to enjoy the view.

If you ever find yourself in Pittsburgh treat yourself to a round trip on one of the 'inclines'!

Santos Museum of Economic Botany

Sometimes museums which might sound rather dull (to design aficionados such as myself) can be held in the most astonishingly beautiful buildings. Such is the case with the Santos Museum of Economic Botany at the Botanic Gardens of Adelaide, Australia which my penpal recently sent to me.

This little classical gem of a building from 1879 was just extensively and sensitively renovated. The structure wasn't built as the Greek temple it resembles but rather as the science museum it remains.

The ceiling is a good example of how the Victorians were able to meld together decorative detailing with highly detailed and rather commercial looking steel structure. I love the gilded mechanical vent. If you can't hide it -make a feature of it!

The collections themselves are just as decorative as the building - these rather amazing Victorian models of mushrooms above are entirely made of wax! I remember even as a child going to the Buhl Planetarium in Pittsburgh which at the time was the science museum (now the Children's museum of Pittsburgh) and being more interested in the beautiful building than in the exhibits themselves. Design inspiration can come from the most surprising places, no?

The William Penn Hotel

Since opening in 1916, the William Penn Hotel has been the cultural hub for many of Pittsburgh's more elegant social events (my parents were married here as well as having their high school proms on the upper level ballrooms).

While the hotel might be a tad bit shabby these days, I never miss a chance of having a drink in the Terrace Room off the lobby seen here, and last weekend was no exception. Elegant crystal chandeliers, great old details and wood paneling, not to mention the sense of history here, all draw me in (as did the bartender's heavy pour!).

Do you have a favorite local hotel that you haunt?

New Life, Old House

While in Pittsburgh this past weekend, I was able to tour a beautiful old house in one of my favorite neighborhoods and see the process of reinvention.

Sitting on a large lot in a mature neighborhood, the house clearly has good bones but was beginning to look a little tired. The roof is currently covered in flat clay tiles, but during the renovation slate tiles will be used (you can see the roofing work on the left hand wing).

The houses in the neighborhood all are stately but their presence belies their relatively small footprint. They may be mansions but they're not mcmansion size: rather they are human scale.

The brickwork was amazing. A watertable lies under the first floor and the windows have brick casing. This window goes into the beautiful paneled library below.

Who doesn't want a room like this in their house? It's no surprise it is the only room to go through the renovation untouched.

Double doors lead you from the entry hall into the room.

This jib, or hidden, door leads back to the butler's pantry and kitchens.

The old doors found through out the house are beautiful painted wood, raised-panel doors with a very elegant design that I haven't come across very often in my work or studies.

Many old houses don't have the insulation required for modern mechanical units so the walls throughout the house are being built-in (see the 2x4 wall construction mounted on the old plaster walls). I loved finding remnants of original wallpaper throughout the house.

This old iron light fixture was found on the ceiling of the screen porch on the back.

In the screen porch you see all of the elements coming together; beautiful old wooden screen doors, interesting wood windows, beautiful brickwork and terracotta clay tiles. In this age of the tear-down and rebuild, it is refreshing to see someone working with what they have.