Father Pitt

Tag: Schenley Park

  • Edward Bigelow Contemplates the Cathedral of Learning

    Statue of Edward Bigelow and the Cathedral of Learning

    The statue of Edward Bigelow by Giuseppe Moretti, with the Cathedral of Learning in the background.

  • Colonel Alexander Leroy Hawkins Memorial

    Colonel Alexander Leroy Hawkins memorial

    Col. Hawkins was a state senator as well as a much-respected officer in the Spanish-American War, which America fought to free the Spanish colonies, and the ensuing Philippine insurrection, which America fought to keep her newly acquired colony. He died in 1899; this memorial was put up in 1904. Originally the base extended in an embracing curve, as we see in this old photograph from Historic Pittsburgh; the extensions were probably cut off when the approaches were built for the Panther Hollow Bridge.

    Memorial as built
    Statue of Col. Hawkins
    Inscription

    In an earlier version of this article, Father Pitt had negligently typed “1894” instead of “1904” as the date of this memorial. It is harder than one thinks to cross the gap between centuries.

  • Robert Burns by J. Massey Rhind

    This is one of several Robert Burns statues that J. Massey Rhind made for various cities in the United States. Pittsburgh’s was sponsored by Andrew Carnegie and other prominent Pittsburghers of Scots ancestry.

    Cameras: above, Konica-Minolta DiMAGE Z3; below, Olympus E-20n.

  • 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.

  • Autumn Leaves in Schenley Park

    The climate is just a bit warmer in the middle of the city, so fall colors last longer in Schenley Park than they do in the suburbs. Here we have an album of autumn leaves from the end of October.