During our six mile walk around Pittsburgh, in addition to enjoying the bridges and rivers, we were impressed with the mix of old and new, the historic and the modern.  We stopped for a light lunch, and of course I had to taste a Pittsburgh pilsner, but otherwise we didn’t shop.  We just looked, and walked, and marveled and exclaimed.  It was a perfect day to explore.

Ruth pointed out that the leaves of the Honey Locust tree, which we saw all along the streets, are the colors of the sports teams of Pittsburgh.

The Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail complex, designed in 1883 by Boston architect Henry Hobson Richardson, and built between 1884-1888, is a beautiful historic building right in the middle of Pittsburgh’s downtown business district.

The P&LERR (Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad) terminal building, or the Landmarks Building, was constructed in 1900.  This historic landmark, once a busy passenger station and hub of the P&LERR railroad, has been renovated and in now contains shops, restaurants, and is a wedding venue.

The interior was being set up for a wedding but we were allowed to take a quick look.  The low light made for difficult spur of the moment photography, but wow! Isn’t it a beautiful room?

The Union Trust Building was erected in 1915–16 by industrialist Henry Clay Frick. The Flemish-Gothic structure’s original purpose was to serve as a shopping arcade. Known as the Union Arcade, it featured 240 shops and galleries. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

This beautiful movie palace was a major theatre in Pittsburgh, opened originally as the Grand Theatre in 1918.  Renamed Warner Theatre in 1930, it was used as a cinema through the 1980s, deteriorating all the while.  The auditorium was demolished, and a two story shopping center named Warner Center was built on the site. The beautiful doors and a portion of the huge lobby have been retained.

The clubhouse of the Harvard, Yale, and Princeton Club of Allegheny is a National Historic Landmark.  Built in 1894, the building originally contained 12 three-room apartments and served as workers’ row housing. Pittsburgh architect and club member Edward B. Lee (Harvard Class of 1899) was commissioned to transform the space into a private club, and after extensive renovation was re-opened in 1930.  The courtyard reminded us of one that might be found in New Orleans, and had a quaint feel in the middle of the big city.

The Buhl Building is a historic commercial building in the heart of downtown Pittsburgh. Built in 1913, the building is faced with multi-colored terra cotta tiles.  It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.  The yellow honey locust trees look even better against those blue and cream tiles, don’t they?

Isn’t this pedestrian walk way, with water feature and lovely purple lights, wonderful?  We came across this as we were walking near the Rachel Carson bridge (I think), but I was not able to find any information online about it.

One PNC Plaza is a high-rise office building located in the Central Business District.  Constructed in 1972, and 30 stories high, it currently features the world’s largest green wall.

I sure hope you enjoyed this walking tour of downtown Pittsburgh.  The information for this post was taken from Wikipedia and from a variety of Pittsburgh websites.

 Next and final Pittsburgh post:  Inclines and other sites in this fun city.