Category Archives: Pennsylvania

  While no cornerstone is immediately visible, the former Presbyterian church is a large A-frame sanctuary structure with a stone and brick face with a central entrance. In the background is a possibly older educational building, c. 1930.

The Scaife Hall of Engineering is a mid-century complex including a boxy corporate structure with metal screens and a circular concrete-clad lecture hall. The structure was designed by local architects Altenhof and Bown in 1961-62. Bown attended Carnegie Mellon for architecture … Continue reading →

This former synagogue in the East Liberty section of Pittsburgh is actually just an alteration to an existing residence with the addition of a striking mid-century facade. The stone and cement front wall incorporates a stylized menorah design topped by … Continue reading →

Our next few posts will take in a core group of mid-century commercial buildings in downtown Pittsburgh, next to “The Point.” The locally named point is actually Point State Park, sited at the meeting point of Pittsburgh’s rivers. Creation of the … Continue reading →

Donner House is a residential building on the Carnegie Mellon campus. With its eye-catching aqua brick, blue-tinted glass, and metal panels, it is distinctly mid-century and like nothing else nearby. It was designed by Mitchell & Ritchey in 1952-54, one of … Continue reading →

 This is an interesting mid-century building sited awkwardly in an odd location. The Immaculate Conception Church is at the corner of Edmond Street and Corday Way in Bloomfield, just off Liberty Avenue. It’s a small site and Corday Way functions much like … Continue reading →

What is now the Tepper School of Business was originally built as the Graduate School of Industrial Administration. It sits elevated above the corner of Frew and Tech Streets, across from Skibo Gynmasium.   It was built in 1951 and … Continue reading →

Hunt Library is one of a few mid-century buildings on Carnegie Mellon’s campus, dating from 1960. The majority of buildings were built earlier or just recently. The architects were Lawrie and Green; the firm was formed in 1922 and closed in 1972. … Continue reading →