So far this is the only building old Pa Pitt has identified as designed by J. E. Cole, about whom he knows nothing other than that Cole designed this building.(1) The storefront has been modernized, but otherwise the building is in near-original condition. The corner is an obtuse angle, and Father Pitt wonders whether the unusual seam at that corner was the result of the architect’s original plan, or of the low-bidding contractor’s refusal to trim the bricks properly without an extra payment. It was imitated many years later by whoever added the modern storefront.
Footnotes
- Source: “Another Costly Residence for East End,” Pittsburgh Gazette, January 25, 1902, p. 11: “Architect J. E. Cole will take bids Monday on a three-story store and flat building to be built for Mrs. Laura Pritchard at the corner of Center and Herron avenues. The dimensions are 45×43 feet and the estimated cost is $8,000.” “L. M. Pritchard” is marked as owner on maps not long afterward. (↩)
