Father Pitt

Tag: King (William Henry Jr.)

  • St. Luke’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, West View

    St. Luke’s Lutheran Church

    William Henry King, Jr., was the architect of this pretty country church in the city, built in 1927.

    Cornerstone with dates “founded 1907, erected 1927
    Center Avenue side

    The lot Mr. King had to work with was difficult. West View topography is absurd even by Pittsburgh standards. Here Center Avenue, which meanders all over the borough—it originally carried streetcar tracks, so in many spots it is unexpectedly wide where the streetcars ran in a median—runs in a sort of ravine under Ridgewood Avenue, which crosses it on an overpass. The architect turned the difficulties into advantages; he made the most picturesque use of the setting, and he gave the church entrances on multiple levels. The extra width allows for angle parking on both sides of Center Avenue.

    Center Avenue entrance
    Tower

    The tower is a streamlined adaptation of the style of English country Gothic parish churches.

    Ridgewood Avenue front
    Front elevation

    They teach punning in seminaries. If you have the humility to put up with it, you are qualified for the clergy.

    Ridgewood Avenue view
    Oblique view of the Ridgewood Avenue front
    Entrance
    Entrance
    Hinge

    At the special request of one particular reader, old Pa Pitt is collecting elaborate metal hinges.

    St. Luke’s
    Canon PowerShot SX20 IS.
    Comments

  • Mt. Lebanon Municipal Building

    Mount Lebanon is a township, technically speaking; but it feels more like a city of its own. Post-Gazette columnist Peter Leo always referred to it as “the Great State of Mount Lebanon,” which sums up how Pittsburghers think Mount Lebanese think of themselves. The central business district is “uptown”—a word that means an area outside downtown in most cities (even Pittsburgh itself), but in southwestern Pennsylvania usually means a downtown area that happens to be on a hilltop. Uptown and the surrounding area is now a national historic district, and this 1930 Art Deco building is one of its gems: it is the masterpiece of its architect, William Henry King, Jr.

    A decade-old article from the Trib has quite a bit of good information about the building.

    Camera: Canon PowerShot S45. The picture of the whole building above is a composite of four photographs.