This fine corner-tower church, whose cornerstone was laid in 1911, was designed by O. M. Topp and Charles M. Hutchison.1 The plan was probably made in 1906, when a small chapel was put up with the intention of building the larger church when there was enough money. This is one of the very rare cases, incidentally, where the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation is wrong. The PHLF plaque has the church designed by F. Hoffman & Co.; but F. Hoffman & Co., was a Wilkinsburg contractor (probably the one that got the contract for the building), not an architectural firm.
The congregation is gone, but some attempt is being made to restore the building as a Center for Civic Arts. Old Pa Pitt wishes the Center good fortune, because this fine building deserves to have a future, and Wilkinsburg deserves art. As we can see from this old postcard from the Presbyterian Historical Society collection, the building has hardly been altered at all:
The congregation prospered, and in 1928 a large educational wing was built—now abandoned and in bad shape. The architect was Lawrence Wolfe, with O. M. Topp—by then one of the grand old men of Pittsburgh architecture—listed as “associate architect.”2
- “Cornerstone Laying Among Church Events,” Press, August 27, 1911. “The church was designed by O. M. Topp and Charles M. Hutchison.” ↩︎
- The Charette, June, 1928: “507. Architect: Lawrence Wolfe, 119, E. Montgomery Ave., N.S., Pittsburgh, Pa. (O. M. Topp, Associate Architect). Title: School Building for Second Presbyterian Church, Wilkinsburg, Pa. Location: Franklin and Mulberry Streets, Wilkinsburg, Pa. Ready for bids July 15. Approximate size: Three stories and basement. Cubage: 200,000 cu. ft. Stone walls.” ↩︎
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