Then & Now 1926-2026: Bluff Religious Buildings

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Forbes Avenue, near Jumonville, looking east.

Bluff Neighborhood

“Bluff” is the name used on the official map of city-designated neighborhoods, but the local community organization calls it “Uptown” and the city used “Uptown” for the special zoning districts inspired by the EcoInnovation District Plan for “Uptown/West Oakland.”

Both names are descriptive of different aspects of the neighborhood. Located upriver from downtown Pittsburgh, “Uptown” is a logical (and attractive) name. On the other hand, near the southern border of the neighborhood, Bluff Street blends into Blvd of the Allies. Both streets line the edge of a sheer cliff and provide sweeping vistas across and down the Monongahela River to South Side Flats and Slopes neighborhoods and beyond.

Uptown suggests a dense and vibrant community, while Bluff suggests a steep, potentially tough, sparsely populated area. Between Bluff Street and Fifth Avenue, Uptown/Bluff is a densely developed neighborhood. Between Bluff Street and the Monongahela River, Uptown/Bluff is currently predominately freeways and parking lots where there used to be numerous railroad lines, rail yards, and a handful of small industries.

While Uptown/Bluff was densely built out in 1926, the neighborhood has experienced disjointed investment and disinvestment in the decades since.

The Bluff Street Urban Renewal project was investment for the expansion of Duquesne University. As of 1970, the city relocated 219 families, 252 individuals, and 101 businesses for this expansion, and had 288 new units of housing under construction. Another 5 families, 200 individuals, and 9 businesses were expected to be displaced before the end of the project. Another investment was planned for a different institution’s expansion. The Mercy Hospital Expansion Urban Renewal project was proposed to cover 20 acres, but no projections were provided in the 1970 report for any displacement in this dense neighborhood.

Decades of disinvestment are apparent in the number of vacant lots and vacant buildings. Many lots had been bought up and converted into surface parking lots, something the EcoInnovation Plan and subsequent zoning districts strongly curtail.

In the last 10 years, reinvestment in the neighborhood has grown significantly, shifting from small efforts of individuals who purchased homes and restored them to large developers filling in new, large, multi-story buildings. UPMC Mercy and Duquesne University also continue to expand and build large new institutional buildings in the neighborhood. The neighborhood’s infrastructure is also seeing investment now as Forbes and Fifth Avenues have been undergoing a multi-year reconstruction to support a future bus rapid transit line through the neighborhood.

What these patterns have in common is change. The religious sites from the 1926 directory reflect that change as none of them are what they were 100 years ago, except for the hospital chapel.

Neighborhood Statistics (Out of 70 in this Series)

  • 46th largest by acreage
  • 18th highest number of religious sites
  • 9th most sites/acre

Locations

The map below shows the locations for 9 of the 10 congregations listed in the 1926 directory for the Bluff (the dotted line marks the neighborhood boundary). I’m intentionally leaving out the Mercy Hospital Chapel as a religious center that doesn’t fit the typology of what I’m studying. There are only 7 pins because some congregations appear to have shared buildings.

What are they now?

The table below matches the 10 congregations listed in the 1926 directory with the current use of the site.

1926 Congregation NameBy 2026 the Congregation’s Building is:
Central Presbyterian Churchbeing redeveloped into housing
Corinthian Baptist Churchvacant
Eighth United Presbyterian Churchreplaced with a parking lot
First Pentecostal Churchlocation unclear, may be a parking lot
Jesus Saves Missionreplaced with a parking garage for a Catholic university
Mercy Hospital Chapel (no photo)still Mercy Hospital Chapel
Russian Missionbeing redeveloped into housing
Second Methodist Protestantreplaced with a commercial building that is now used by a religious institution
Second St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran (Missouri) Churchconverted to a religion-based community service organization
St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Churchreplaced with a parking lot

Photos

  • Eighth Presbyterian United Church site – 2026
  • former Central Presbyterian Church and former Russian Mission – 2026
  • former Corinthian Baptist Church – 2026
  • Second Methodist Protestant Church site – 2026
  • St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church (maybe also First Pentecostal) site – 2026
  • Jesus Saves Mission site – 2026
  • former St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church – 2026

For more on this series, visit our introductory post.

Sources:

G. M. Hopkins & Co. Bluff. Plate 14. 1914. https://historicpittsburgh.org/islandora/object/pitt:20090804-hopkins-0016

G. M. Hopkins & Co. Central Business District, Bluff. Plate 8. 1914. https://historicpittsburgh.org/islandora/object/pitt:20090804-hopkins-0010

Pittsburgh Department of City Planning. A Development and Renewal Program for Pittsburgh, Summary Documentation, Pittsburgh Community Renewal Program. Pittsburgh, 1970. https://pittsburgharchives.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/IO_d1f07da0-9303-4aee-a162-04c83a0eaaa0/

Pittsburgh Department of City Planning. EcoInnovation District: Uptown/West Oakland. September 2017. https://www.pittsburghpa.gov/files/assets/city/v/1/dcp/documents/3494_ecoinnovation_plan.pdf

Polk’s Pittsburgh City Directory, 1926. Pittsburgh: R. L. Polk & Co. https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735056286846/viewer#page/4/mode/1up

Then & Now 1926-2026: Bloomfield Religious Buildings

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Pearl Street, looking southwest

Bloomfield Neighborhood

The boundaries of Bloomfield are defined differently depending on who you’re talking to. This may be partially attributed to the two distinct patterns of residential development found within the city’s official boundary of the neighborhood. Much of the residential portion of Bloomfield, and the part I always picture when someone says they live in Bloomfield, is filled with small homes perched shoulder-to-shoulder at the sidewalk’s edge. The rest of the residential portion of Bloomfield features larger homes with modest front and rear lawns. The Liberty Avenue commercial corridor cuts through the middle of the neighborhood. Vacancy is low for both the residential and commercial properties.

While vacancy is low and most of the buildings present 100 years ago remain standing, Bloomfield still experienced change in that time. This is most clearly illustrated by its religious sites. Some remain religious site, though not for the congregations that worshipped there in 1926. Others have been converted to new uses. Several have been demolished. Three sites closed in the last two decades; two of which experienced strong contention between the former congregants and the religious entity owners over the fates of the buildings. One was demolished (not what the former congregants wanted) and the other was sold to a developer who restored it for secular uses (the former congregants’ preferred outcome).

Neighborhood Statistics (Out of 70 in this Series)

  • 22nd largest by acreage
  • 8th highest number of religious sites (tie)
  • 15th most sites/acre

Locations

The map below shows the locations of the 15 congregations listed in the 1926 directory for Bloomfield (the dotted line marks the neighborhood boundary).

What are they now?

The table below matches the 15 congregations listed in the 1926 directory with the current use of the site.

1926 Congregation NameBy 2026 the Congregation’s Building is:
Christ Methodist Episcopal Churchnow First United Methodist Church
First Evangelical Lutheran Churchconverted to a secular use, may be vacant
Fourth United Presbyterian Churchconverted to a faith-based community service use
Friendship Park Methodist Episcopal Churchreplaced with a hospital building
Gospel Hall Missionconverted to a secular use
Gustavus Adolphus Evangelical Lutheran Churchnow Evaline Lutheran Church
Holy Calvary Missionconverted to a secular use, possibly abandoned
Immaculate Conception Catholic Churchdemolished
Luther Memorial Evangelical Lutheran Churchreplaced with new building, now the East End Assembly of God
Mt. Olive Baptist Churchdemolished
Olivet Missiondemolished
Shadyside United Presbyterian Churchreplaced with a drive-thru restaurant
St. John’s (German) Evangelical Lutheran Churchconverted to residential
St. Joseph’s (German) Catholic Churchvacant
St. Luke’s Episcopal Churchreplaced with a parking lot

Photos

  • former Holy Calvary Mission – 2026
  • Friendship Park Methodist Episcopal Church site – 2026
  • Olivet Mission site – 2026
  • St. Luke’s Episcopal Church site – 2026
  • former First Evanglical Lutheran Church – 2023
  • former St. John’s German Catholic Church – 2013
  • Luther Memorial Evangelical Lutheran Church site – 2026
  • Shadyside United Presbyterian Church site – 2026
  • former Christ United Methodist Church – 2026
  • former St. Joseph’s Catholic Church – 2026
  • Immaculate Conception Catholic Church site – 2026
  • Mt. Olive Baptist Church site – 2026
  • former Fourth United Presbyterian Church – 2026
  • former Gospel Hall Mission – 2026
  • former Gustavus Adolphus Lutheran Evangelical Church – 2026

For more on this series, visit our introductory post.

Sources:

Polk’s Pittsburgh City Directory, 1926. Pittsburgh: R. L. Polk & Co. https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735056286846/viewer#page/4/mode/1up

Then & Now 1926-2026: Beltzhoover Religious Buildings

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View from Estella Street and Loyal Way looking northwest

Beltzhoover Neighborhood

Beltzhoover is a neighborhood I am interested in learning more about. It usually doesn’t come up in the discourse around the intentional disinvestment and destruction of the buildings in Pittsburgh’s majority-minority neighborhoods. While it was not targeted with the traditional block-scale demolition and redevelopment of Urban Renewal, it was designated as an area needing “restoration” under the City’s Neighborhood Improvement Program in 1966 to “hold and stabilize declining area.”

Since that time, Beltzhoover has seen significantly more lot-by-lot disinvestment and demolition than the surrounding neighborhoods that have higher percentages of white residents. In 2010, Beltzhoover’s population was 83% Black, while it’s northeastern neighbor, Allentown, was 35% Black and it’s southeastern neighbor, Knoxville, was 52% Black.1 Between 1974 and 2010, Beltzhoover lost approximately 700 housing units while Allentown and Knoxville each lost only about 200 units.

Walking the streets, the lines between these three neighborhoods are not apparent except that once you get into Beltzhoover, the exponentially higher number of vacant lots is very noticeable. Given the high rate of demolition in this neighborhood, it is interesting to note that only 1 of the 6 religious sites from 1926 is no longer actively used for religious purposes. However, two of these buildings indicate a different kind of story than the other neighborhoods we’ve visited in this series so far. The bunker-like appearance of the buildings on the sites of the former Montooth Methodist Episcopal Church and South Hills Baptist Church suggests perseverance in the face of financial struggles or social struggles or both. The recent renovations to McKinley Park and the strong blocks of housing edging the park also tell a story of community perseverance and success.

Neighborhood Statistics (Out of 70 in this Series)

  • 40th largest by acreage
  • 31st highest number of religious sites (multi-way tie)
  • 22nd most sites/acre

Locations

The map below shows the locations of the 6 congregations listed in the 1926 directory for Beltzhoover (the dotted line marks the neighborhood boundary).

What are they now?

The table below matches the 6 congregations listed in the 1926 directory with the current use of the site.

1926 Congregation NameBy 2026 the Congregation’s Building is:
Belulah Baptist Churchnew Belulah Baptist Church
Church of Christdemolished
McKinley Park Presbyterian Churchchanged to a different religious institution
Montooth Methodist Episcopal Churchunclear, a different religious institution now uses the site
South Hills Baptist Churchunclear, a different religious institution now uses the site
St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Churchchanged to a different religious institution

Photos

  • Belulah Baptist Church (2026)
  • former McKinley Presbyterian Church (2026)
  • former Montooth Methodist Episcopal Church site (2026)
  • Church of Christ site (2026)
  • former South Hills Baptist Church site (2026)
  • former St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church (2026)
  1. The other edges of Beltzhoover are bordered by a steep ravine, highway, and park, creating clear separation and barriers to the adjoining neighborhoods on those sides. ↩︎

For more on this series, visit our introductory post.

Sources:

Pittsburgh Department of City Planning. A Development and Renewal Program for Pittsburgh, Summary Documentation, Pittsburgh Community Renewal Program. Pittsburgh, 1970. https://pittsburgharchives.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/IO_d1f07da0-9303-4aee-a162-04c83a0eaaa0/

Pittsburgh Neighborhood Alliance. An Atlas of the Allentown Neighborhood of Pittsburgh, 1977. https://historicpittsburgh.org/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735070288703/viewer#page/1/mode/1up

Pittsburgh Neighborhood Alliance. An Atlas of the Beltzhoover Neighborhood of Pittsburgh, 1977. https://historicpittsburgh.org/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735070288679/viewer#page/1/mode/2up

Pittsburgh Neighborhood Alliance. An Atlas of the Knoxville Neighborhood of Pittsburgh, 1977. https://historicpittsburgh.org/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735070288976/viewer#page/1/mode/1up

Pittsburgh Department of City Planning. Planning Commission Minutes 1966. City of Pittsburgh. (page 363) https://pittsburgharchives.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/IO_48290996-fb3f-41b9-8873-1189a3642972/

Pittsburgh Department of City planning. PGHSnap. City of Pittsburgh. 2011.

Polk’s Pittsburgh City Directory, 1926. Pittsburgh: R. L. Polk & Co. https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735056286846/viewer#page/4/mode/1up

Go Fish 9

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GoFish! was a fundraiser in Erie, PA, in 2001. In 2023, Shelly and I took a long weekend in Erie with a goal to find as many fish as we could. We used Amy H.’s FourSquare map to locate probable locations. Several fish were shown as being at Splash Lagoon. I assumed they would be inside the amusement facility and so we did not try to collect photos of them. However, when I went to Erie in Summer 2025 and stayed at a hotel across the street from Splash Lagoon, I found that their fish and frogs were all outside (three fish and one frog, plus one frog at an adjacent business).

“Splash-the-Lagoon-A-Tuna” was designed by artist Dan Byler and sponsored by Scott Enterprises.

Then & Now 1926-2026: Beechview Religious Buildings

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View of Beechview from Kenberma Avenue: post-war homes in foreground, pre-war homes and commercial corridor in background

Beechview Neighborhood

Beechview was its own borough until annexed by the city in 1909. It was a small community, mostly farms or other rural estates, until the Liberty Tubes opened in 1924 when it quickly transformed into one of the first bedroom communities in the region. The main street (Broadway Avenue) follows the crest of the main ridge while the rest of the neighborhood attempts to drape an urban grid over the steep, undulating terrain. Most of the housing south of Crane Avenue was built in the 1920s and 1930s and features a blend of small to moderate detached single-family homes, rowhouses, duplexes, and small apartment buildings. Several lots remained undeveloped until after WWII, but were quickly filled in at that time with the traditional detached post-war suburban house with integral garage. North of Crane Avenue remained largely rural until after WWII and features uniform blocks of post-war suburban housing, mostly single-family, but with an intentional, uniform pocket of duplexes separate from the single-family homes.

While the neighborhood has experienced population changes since then, population loss and demographic shifts, it’s housing stock has remained relatively stable. Urban renewal did not turn its sights onto Beechview and other demolition initiatives throughout the city also primarily passed by Beechview. Perhaps that is why only one and a half sites for the 9 congregations listed in the 1926 directory have since been demolished. Two have been converted to secular uses and the rest remain active as religious centers.

Neighborhood Statistics (Out of 70 in this Series)

  • 5th largest by acreage
  • 19th highest number of religious sites (multi-way tie)
  • 52nd most sites/acre

Locations

The map below shows the locations of the 9 congregations listed in the 1926 directory for Beechview (the dotted line marks the neighborhood boundary).

What are they now?

The table below matches the 9 congregations listed in the 1926 directory with the current use of the site.

1926 Congregation NameBy 2026 the Congregation’s Building is:
Beechview Christian Churchconverted to secular use, healthcare
Beechview Methodist Episcopal Churchchanged to a different religious institution
Beechview Presbyterian Churchpartially demolished and replaced with a fire station
Beechview United Presbyterian Churchstill Beechview United Presbyterian Church
Holy Trinity Lutheran Evangelical Churchstill Trinity Lutheran Evangelical Church
Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ Latter Day Saintschanged to a different religious institution
St. Catherine Catholic Churchnew St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church
Third Christian Science Churchdemolished, now a side yard
West Liberty Union Missionconverted to residential use

Photos

  • former West Liberty Union Mission (2026)
  • Beechview Presbyterian Church site (2026)
  • Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church (2016)
  • former Beechview Methodist Episcopal Church (2016)
  • Beechview United Presbyterian (2016)
  • former Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ Latter Day Saints (2026)
  • St. Catherine Catholic Church site (2026)
  • former Beechview Christian Church (2026)
  • Third Christian Science Church site (2026)

For more on this series, visit our introductory post.

Sources:

Polk’s Pittsburgh City Directory, 1926. Pittsburgh: R. L. Polk & Co. https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735056286846/viewer#page/4/mode/1up

Then & Now 1926-2026: Bedford Dwellings Religious Buildings

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Bedford Avenue looking northeast.1

Bedford Dwellings Neighborhood

One of the five neighborhoods collectively known as The Hill District, Bedford Dwellings is a neighborhood named after a public housing project from the 1930s & 1940s. It is a strip of land, a block wide for most of its length, situated between Bedford Avenue and the cliff that overlooks the Strip District and Allegheny River. While no redevelopment projects were undertaken in this neighborhood during the official “Urban Renewal” era (approximately 1949-1970s) per the City’s 1970 report, the neighborhood has been erased and redeveloped multiple times in the last 100 years.

The 1923 G. M. Hopkins map shows a mix of uses along this 1-mile section of Bedford Avenue. There are blocks of small lots partially built out with homes, the Lincoln Memorial Cemetery, the Entress Brick Company and a few other small businesses, the Municipal Hospital, and the Tuberculosis League Hospital.

By April 1932, Entress Brick Company is replaced with Greenlee Field, the first baseball park built by a Black businessman. “At Forbes Field, Yankee Stadium, and every other major league stadium where Negroes played, they weren’t allowed to use the locker facilities. But tonight [opening night] the men of the [Pittsburgh] Crawfords and the Black Yankees didn’t have to change at a boardinghouse or on a bus. Tonight, thanks to Gus Greenlee, they slipped out of their sweaty uniforms and muddy cleats in the dignity of their own locker room.”2

Unfortunately, the city had a different vision for the use of the land and Greenlee Field closed after only 4 years. The “Housing Authority offered Greenless $38,000 for the land and threatened to seize it if he didn’t take the deal.”3 The Housing Authority then built its first public housing development.

Today, as the Housing Authority works to replace their 20th-Century housing units with 21st-Century housing units across the city, some parts of the Bedford Dwellings neighborhood have been redeveloped, again, using HUD HOPE grants and others are slated for their next redevelopment project funded by the federal Choice Neighborhoods grant program.

The two religious sites listed in the 1926 city directory were located near the part of the neighborhood most built out with housing per the 1923 G. M. Hopkins maps. One likely succumbed to the same project that erased Greenlee Field; the other survived and today shows a strong presence both in the church building and in nearby properties.

Neighborhood Statistics (Out of 70 in this Series)

  • 67th largest by acreage
  • 53rd highest number of sites (multi-way tie)
  • 32nd most sites/acre

Locations

The map below shows the locations of the 2 congregations listed in the 1926 directory for Bedford Dwellings (the dotted line marks the neighborhood boundary).

What are they now?

The table below matches the 2 congregations listed in the 1926 directory with the current use of the site.

1926 Congregation NameBy 2026 the Congregation’s Building is:
Macedonia Baptist Churchstill Macedonia Baptist Church
New Light Baptist Churchreplaced with a community baseball diamond

Photos

  • Macedonia Baptist Church 2026
  • New Light Baptist Church site 2026

Footnotes

  1. On left: beginnings of the demolition of the 1938 Bedford Dwellings public housing;
    Center: the 2000s community center from the HUD HOPE VI grant redevelopment;
    On right: rowhouses in the Middle Hill neighborhood that illustrate what the housing pre-1938 in Bedford Dwellings neighborhood might have looked like. ↩︎
  2. Whitaker, 90-91 ↩︎
  3. Whitaker, 121 ↩︎

For more on this series, visit our introductory post.

Sources:

G. M. Hopkins & Co. Bedford Dwellings. Plate 30A. 1923. https://historicpittsburgh.org/islandora/object/pitt%3A23v0130a

G. M. Hopkins & Co. Crawford-Roberts. Plate 11B. 1923. https://historicpittsburgh.org/islandora/object/pitt%3A23v0111b

G. M. Hopkins & Co. Middle Hill. Plate 29A. 1923. https://historicpittsburgh.org/islandora/object/pitt:23v0129a

Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh. A Report to the People: Public Housing in Pittsburgh, 1938-1953. Pittsburgh, 1953. https://pittsburgharchives.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/IO_b74e0198-8ee1-4b50-93d6-b631adc3dc44/

Housing Authority City of Pittsburgh. Bedford Dwellings Redevelopment Planning. https://hacp.org/bedfordconnects/

Pittsburgh Department of City Planning. A Community Profile of Bedford Dwellings. 1974. https://historicpittsburgh.org/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735070065887

Pittsburgh Department of City Planning. A Development and Renewal Program for Pittsburgh, Summary Documentation, Pittsburgh Community Renewal Program. Pittsburgh, 1970. https://pittsburgharchives.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/IO_d1f07da0-9303-4aee-a162-04c83a0eaaa0/

Polk’s Pittsburgh City Directory, 1926. Pittsburgh: R. L. Polk & Co. https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735056286846/viewer#page/4/mode/1up

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. “HUD Secretary Ben Carson Designates the Bedford Hope Center as New EnVision Center.” October 16, 2020. https://archives.hud.gov/news/2020/pr20-174.cfm?utm_source=chatgpt.com

Whitaker, Mark. The Untold Story of Smoketown: The Other Great Black Renaissance. New York: Simon & Schuster Paperbacks, 2018.

Then & Now 1926-2026: Arlington Religious Buildings

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Clover Street looking south from Charcot Street

Arlington Neighborhood

Arlington Avenue follows the crest of a ridge with the Arlington neighborhood draped over the southern slope and the South Side Slopes neighborhood draped over the northern slope. While I didn’t encounter any friendly local residents on the street to be nebby with, the style and density of the neighborhood suggests that it is a similar age to Allentown. Presumably built largely before cars, when people could have commuted to the industries on the river flats by street car or incline.

Neither of the two religious sites from the 1926 directory are still active. One was converted to a residential use. The site of the other one was replaced with a public school, though the congregation had moved to a newer church built next door. However, both the school and the church now sit vacant.

Neighborhood Statistics (Out of 70 in this Series)

  • 33rd largest by acreage
  • 53rd highest number of sites (multi-way tie)
  • 58th most sites/acre

Locations

The map below shows the locations of the 2 congregations listed in the 1926 directory for Arlington (the dotted line marks the neighborhood boundary).

What are they now?

The table below matches the 2 congregations listed in the 1926 directory with the current use of the site.

1926 Congregation NameBy 2026 the Congregation’s Building is:
St. Henry Catholic Churchreplaced with now vacant school
St. James Lutheran Evangalical Churchconverted to residential

Photos

  • former St. James Lutheran Evangelical Church (2026)
  • 1926 St. Henry Catholic Church site (2026)

For more on this series, visit our introductory post.

Sources:

Polk’s Pittsburgh City Directory, 1926. Pittsburgh: R. L. Polk & Co. https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735056286846/viewer#page/4/mode/1up

Then & Now 1926-2026: Allentown Religious Buildings

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Walter Street looking southwest from Climax Street

Allentown Neighborhood

Allentown features a tight grid gently folded over undulating terrain. Densely-packed, modest houses line narrow roads. A resident across from one of the religious sites, who was interested in what I was photographing, shared that her house was built in the 1880s. In those pre-automobile days, residents may have commuted downhill to the industries along the river flats by way of the numerous inclines, one of which used to have a terminus not far from where we were standing and talking.

Three of the jobs I’ve held in my decades of working in Pittsburgh included some element of work in this neighborhood. Much of the neighborhood felt the same as I remembered it from my prior encounters. Long-standing neighborhood restaurants mixed in between vacant storefronts and newer ventures lined the commercial district. Vacant lots and vacant houses sit scattered among the residential blocks. However, I was impressed that some long vacant lots had new infill housing designed for those wanting to age-in-place or people with accessibility needs.

The neighborhood was never targeted for any large-scale Urban Renewal efforts, but individual properties that are vacant, abandoned, or tax delinquent have been demolished from time-to-time. This implies patterns of change, including population loss and disinvestment. The 5 religious sites from 1926 reflect that with each one featuring a unique outcome today: one remains religious, one is now a secular use, one sits vacant, one is a vacant lot, and one is a parking lot.

Neighborhood Statistics (Out of the 70 in this series)

  • 50th largest by acreage
  • 38th highest number of sites (multi-way tie)
  • 18th most sites/acre

Locations

The map below shows the locations of the 5 congregations listed in the 1926 directory for Allentown (the dotted line marks the neighborhood boundary).

What are they now?

The table below matches the 5 congregations listed in the 1926 directory with the current use of the site.

1926 Congregation NameBy 2026 the Congregation’s Building is:
Bethlehem Lutheran Evangelical Churchconverted to a community center
First Methodist Episcopal Churchdemolished
Progressive Spiritualists Churchreplaced with a parking lot
St. George (German) Catholic Churchvacant
Trinity Methodist Episcopalchanged to a different religious institution

Photos

  • First Methodist Episcopal Church site (2026)
  • former Bethlehem Lutheran Evangelical Church (2026)
  • former St George Catholic Church (2026)
  • former Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church (2026)
  • Progressive Spiritualists Church site (2026)

For more on this series, visit our introductory post.

Sources:

Polk’s Pittsburgh City Directory, 1926. Pittsburgh: R. L. Polk & Co. https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735056286846/viewer#page/4/mode/1up

Then & Now 1926-2026: Allegheny West Religious Buildings

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View of West North Avenue, Allegheny West

Allegheny West Neighborhood

Allegheny West is a neighborhood that features a blend of stability and destruction in its built environment.

Allegheny City’s Millionaires Row once occupied this part of town. It is a dense neighborhood, with a mix of uses. While the houses are frequently attached, many have front porches that provide a buffer from the street. Architectural ornamentation is common and the sidewalks are often paved in brick.

Parts of the neighborhood were impacted by “urban renewal.” The southern portion, between Ridge Avenue and the railroads, was designated as a “renewal” area on behalf of the community college. In 1970, the project was just getting started. It was projected that 10 families and 25 individuals would need to be relocated to make way for the community college campus. A few other areas of the neighborhood north of Ridge Avenue have also seen block-scale demolition and redevelopment into parking lots, warehouses, and a fast food restaurant.

One of the buildings from the congregations listed in the 1926 Polk Directory was lost through these smaller demolition/redevelopments. The other two buildings remain intact with the same congregations.

Neighborhood Statistics (Out of 70 in this Series)

  • 68th largest by acreage
  • 45th highest number of sites (multi-way tie)
  • 16th most sites/acre

Locations

The map below shows the locations of the 3 congregations listed in the 1926 directory for Allegheny West (the dotted line marks the neighborhood boundary).

What are they now?

The table below matches the 3 congregations listed in the 1926 directory with the current use of the site.

1926 Congregation NameBy 2026 the Congregation’s Building is:
Calvary Methodist Episcopal Churchstill Calvary Methodist Episcopal Church
Emmanuel Episcopal Churchstill Emmanuel Episcopal Church
North Presbyterian Churchreplaced with a parking lot

Photos

  • Calvary Methodist Episcopal Church (2026)
  • Emmanuel Episcopal Church (2026)
  • North Presbyterian Church site (2026)

For more on this series, visit our introductory post.

Sources:

Pittsburgh Department of City Planning. A Development and Renewal Program for Pittsburgh, Summary Documentation, Pittsburgh Community Renewal Program. Pittsburgh, 1970. https://pittsburgharchives.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/IO_d1f07da0-9303-4aee-a162-04c83a0eaaa0/

Polk’s Pittsburgh City Directory, 1926. Pittsburgh: R. L. Polk & Co. https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt%3A31735056286846/viewer#page/4/mode/1up