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Tufa Bridge in Schenley Park
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Martin’s Cabin
Martin’s Cabin is a log house of the 1700s preserved in Schenley Park. There are not very many buildings of that era left within city limits: the Fort Pitt Blockhouse, the Neill Log House, this cabin, and possibly the Old Stone Tavern are the only ones Father Pitt knows of. It is a curious fact that all the grand houses of stone and brick in old Pittsburgh have long since disappeared, but this humble poor man’s cabin remains. (UPDATE: Note the kind comment below reminding us of the John Woods House in Hazelwood, which is in fact a stone house, though not one of the grandest of its time.)
Camera: Canon PowerShot S45.
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Frick Environmental Center Under Construction
The old Frick Environmental Center in Squirrel Hill burned in 2002. It has taken this long to replace it, but we have every reason to believe that our patience will be rewarded. The new building is designed to meet the standards of the Living Building Challenge, providing its own heat, power, and water.
Camera: Canon PowerShot S45.
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The Walled Garden in Mellon Park
A panoramic view of the Walled Garden. Mellon Park was originally the Mellons’ back yard; the Walled Garden was designed by the landscape architects Vitale and Geiffert. -
Early Spring in Mellon Park
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The Fountain in Mellon Park
The fountain (made by sculptor Edmond Amateis in 1927 or 1928) has been restored to working order, so Father Pitt gives you this opportunity to see the movement and hear the water.
Camera: Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z3.
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Fall Colors in Mellon Park
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Forty-Eight-Star Flag in Bronze
This memorial in Schenley Park to our national flag is one of the few memorials on which you can find the exact cost of the memorial inscribed: $1881.63.
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Wadsworth Stone & Paving Co.
Click on the picture to enlarge it. Back in the good old days, when people took pride in their work, or at least when bronze was cheaper, some contractors would put a bronze plate in the concrete of every sidewalk they laid. They were meant to be permanent, and they do seem to last at least as long as the sidewalks around them. Some of the most ornate plates were the ones left by the Wadsworth Stone & Paving Co., whose plates are works of art in themselves. This one was set in a sidewalk in Squirrel Hill.
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Urn in Mellon Park
A worn face on a worn urn in Mellon Park seems immemorially ancient. It isn’t, but it’s old enough to remember when the park was a millionaire’s private playground.
