Disclosure: old Pa Pitt took some utility cables out of some of these pictures. Fans of Pittsburgh utility cables will have to look elsewhere today.
A beautiful Gothic church from the 1930s. It is typical of Episcopal churches in Pittsburgh: small but rich, Gothic in style, with a steeply pitched roof that makes up more than half the height of the building. The architects were Ingham & Boyd.1
The wooden wheelchair ramp is not the most elegant solution to the problem of access, but it does its job without permanent damage to the building.
Loaves and fishes.
The pelican, a symbol of Christ. In medieval zoology, the pelican was known for feeding her young with her own blood. Modern zoology disputes the data, but as symbolism the legend is irresistible.
Vine and pilaster capitals at the main entrance.
According to the church site, the neatly kept lawn was once the site of a parsonage.
- Source: “Episcopalians Planning North Side Edifice,” Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph, March 30, 1930. Also, “Big Six Who Shaped Face of Pittsburgh To Be Honored for Outstanding Work,” Pittsburgh Press, January 13, 1952, where it is listed among Ingham’s works, along with other Ingham & Boyd projects. Thanks to David Schwing for these clippings. In an earlier version of this article, Father Pitt had admitted ignorance of the architect, but the discovery of the attribution is not surprising, since Ingham & Boyd did several other churches in a very similar style. ↩︎
