Craig Street and Fifth Avenue

15. Craig Street

Continue walking one more block to Craig Street. Turn left at the corner and continue walking down Craig St. You will notice a vibrant, "alive" feeling on Craig Street, because of the popular restaurants, coffee shops, book stores and unique gift shops. You will usually find a crowd of students and tourists at all hours on this busy street. Try to pick out houses that might still be private dwellings (as many structures have been converted to commercial purposes). Some of these houses have been around since Oakland was created from farmland.

16. St. Paul's Cathedral*

When you arrive at the corner of Craig St. and Fifth Avenue you are looking across an intersection to St. Paul's Cathedral. Note that the traffic intersection has a gong-signal to allow blind pedestrians to cross safely. The Western Pennsylvania Association for the Blind office complex is behind you. In downtown Pittsburgh, the original Roman Catholic Cathedral was where H.C. Frick wanted to build the Union Trust building. When Mr. Frick purchased the site from the church, the funds prompted plans for this important addition to the grand scheme for Oakland's civic center. The building's design by Egan & Prindeville Architects, 1906, combines English and German Gothic features. A Christmas Eve service here is breathtaking in its beauty.

Look closely at the Cathedral's main tower to see if you can locate a "paisley-shaped" ying-yang design (horizontal border). Walk diagonally across the intersection to the opposite corner (this was the site of the old Garden's ice skating arena where early skating lessons and hockey games took place; and once even a ski-jump was constructed.

17. Mellon Institute

Look west down Fifth Avenue (back toward the Cathedral of Learning) to see Mellon Institute (1931-37), now part of Carnegie Mellon University. Even if we can't go inside this building devoted to research and development it is still important to realize what this building means to Oakland and Pittsburgh. Benno Janssen, designer of Mellon Institute, chose as an inspiration – the Greek Parthenon. In some respects he went to exceptional lengths to achieve what the Mellon financial investors wanted: the columns of the Indiana limestone are one piece of stone (not drum like sections stacked up to achieve the desired height as in the Parthenon). The research projects going on in this building have been important to many different Pittsburgh industries. The building is nine-stories (six stories are underground -- it's an underground skyscraper!).

18. Fairfax Apartment Building

Look across Fifth Avenue to the Fairfax Apartment Building (designed by P.M. Julian, 1926). Pittsburgh has had apartment buildings since around 1900. You may notice others besides this one, on today's tour. The Fairfax has building details such as: coats of arms, Scottish strap work and the use of terra cotta molded decorations. It took time in Pittsburgh for prosperous citizens to agree upon the acceptability of an "apartment life-style". On the Pitt Campus, what we now call the Student Union was once the Schenley Hotel adjoined by the Schenley Apartments.

19. Central Catholic High School

Cross Neville Street and continue into the next block of Fifth Avenue. The castle-like building you are looking at is Central Catholic High School, designed by E.J. Weber, 1927. The warm-red brick surface contains some interesting details made of light and dark-colored bricks. Look toward the roof for an "X" or "diaper" pattern of brickwork. The building has been modernized: What is your reaction to modern materials (and colors) used on the façade?

20. A pair of churches

As you cross Clyde Street, look to your left (down the block) to see First Church of Christ, Scientist, designed by S. S. Beman, 1904. Beman had made a reputation for Chicago skyscrapers but across the country he achieved acclaim for his Christian Science churches, including the Mother Church in Boston. Notice the porch on this building.

On the corner of Fifth and Clyde is the more recent Holy Spirit Byzantine Catholic Church with its remarkable mosaic wall depicting the Old Testament prophets. Turn around and wave to us here at WQED across Fifth Avenue! WQED Pittsburgh, founded in 1946, was the first educational television station in the nation.

21. Rodef Shalom and the Rodef Shalom Biblical Botanical Gardens*

Continue along Fifth Avenue to the corner of Devonshire Street. Turn left and locate the entrance stone and sign for the Rodef Shalom Biblical Botanical Gardens. Each spring, a different plant or garden theme is announced for the coming growing season. The planners and developers of the garden, retired Rabbi Walter Jacob and Mrs. Irene Jacob, carefully tend the new plants which will be brought to the garden to depict the new theme. In recent years the themes have included varied topics: "King Tut's Vegetable Garden", "Paper", "Soup" and "Beer". Each season there are special plant exhibits, lectures and literature to coordinate with the theme. Call for information about the dates and hours (after June 1). Beautiful wrought iron gates to the garden (in two locations) have the heads of antelopes as decorative details.

After locating the garden, return to Fifth Avenue and walk along the front of Rodef Shalom Congregation. This beautiful Reform temple was designed by Henry Hornbostel, architect (New York/Pittsburgh; 1906-7). Hornbostel had certain favorite materials: cream colored brick, terra cotta, Guastavino tile. Pick some of them out on the façade of the synagogue. If you read about any chance to visit the Biblical Garden or the synagogue for any future event, it will be an opportunity you won't want to miss. Rodef Shalom temple is the eastern most point of our tour today. At the corner of Morewood Avenue turn right and continue walking toward Carnegie Mellon University (CMU).

Continue to Morewood and CMU>>>