Pittsburgh Athletic Association

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Coordinates: 40°26′42″N 79°57′17″W / 40.44500°N 79.95472°W / 40.44500; -79.95472
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Pittsburgh Athletic Association
Pittsburgh Athletic Association
Pittsburgh Athletic Association is located in Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh Athletic Association
Pittsburgh Athletic Association is located in Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh Athletic Association
Pittsburgh Athletic Association is located in the United States
Pittsburgh Athletic Association
Location4215 5th Ave., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Coordinates40°26′42″N 79°57′17″W / 40.44500°N 79.95472°W / 40.44500; -79.95472
Area0.5 acres (0.20 ha)
Built1909-1911
ArchitectJanssen & Abbott
Architectural styleVenetian High Renaissance
Part ofSchenley Farms Historic District (ID83002213[1])
NRHP reference No.78002338[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPDecember 15, 1978
Designated CPJuly 22, 1983
Designated PHLF1970[2]

The Pittsburgh Athletic Association is a historic, Benno Janssen designed building located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Opened as the home of a private social and athletic club of the same name, the building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[3]

Features

Completed in 1911, the building is an eight story, steel frame structure clad in stone and terra cotta in the Venetian High Renaissance style. Architect Benno Janssen used a Venetian Renaissance palace as a prototype for his design, seemingly inspired by the Palazzo Corner della Ca' Grande, Palazzo Grimani di San Luca, and Biblioteca Marciana in Venice, all works of the architect Jacopo Sansovino.[3]

Located at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Bigelow Boulevard in the city's Oakland district, the building faces three other landmark buildings: the University of Pittsburgh's Cathedral of Learning and William Pitt Union (formerly The Schenley Hotel) as well as the Soldiers and Sailors National Military Museum and Memorial. The latter, as well as the nearby Twentieth Century Club, were also designed by Benno Janssen.

History

Club

The Pittsburgh Athletic Association social club was organized in 1908 by real estate developer Franklin Nicola. Prior to opening of the Pittsburgh Athletic Association building, the club operated out of the Farmer's Bank Building (now razed), downtown at Forbes St (then Diamond) and Smithfield.

The Pittsburgh Athletic Association was a nonprofit membership club which operated until 2017.[4] At its height, it posted 2,500 members, and was also notable as the place Fred Rogers conducted daily swims.[5]

It offered comprehensive athletic facilities, sports lessons, spa services, fine dining, and overnight accommodations. Some of the building's more interesting features include a pool on the third floor, full basketball and squash courts, a 16 lane bowling alley, and a room dedicated to former University of Pittsburgh football coach Johnny Majors. The club had several annual events, the most popular including an Easter brunch, a lobster dinner, and collegiate boxing events.

From 1916 to 1920, the PAA fielded an elite amateur ice hockey team featuring such Canadian stars as Herb Drury and brothers Joe and Larry McCormick. The team won the championship of the short-lived National Amateur Hockey League in 1918.[6] When the Olympic Games first included ice hockey in 1920, four of the eleven players on the silver medal-winning U.S. team came from the PAA squad.[7]

Sale

In 2017, the building was purchased by the Walnut Capital group for $12.6 million. Walnut Capital then completed $25 million in renovations including restoration of the exterior and interior spaces. In 2024, the University of Pittsburgh authorized the purchase the building for $34 million.[8]

In film

In 2009, the film Love & Other Drugs, directed by Edward Zwick and starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Hank Azaria, filmed a scene in the Pittsburgh Athletic Association's Grill Room. The 2010 film, She's Out of My League was partly filmed in the bowling alley.[9]

See also

References

  • Kidney, Walter C. (1997). Pittsburgh's Landmark Architecture: The Historic Buildings of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County. Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation. ISBN 0-916670-18-X.
  • Miller, Donald (1997). The Architecture of Benno Janssen. Pittsburgh: Madison Books. ISBN 0-9660-9550-2.
  • Toker, Franklin (1994) [1986]. Pittsburgh: An Urban Portrait. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press. ISBN 0-8229-5434-6.

[10] [11]

  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  2. ^ "Internet Archive: Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation: PHLF Plaques & Registries". 2007-01-27. Archived from the original on 2007-01-27. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
  3. ^ a b "National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form: Pittsburgh Athletic Association" (PDF). October 23, 1978. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  4. ^ Sabatini, Patricia (August 8, 2017). "Pittsburgh Athletic Association reviewing 10 proposals for clubhouse in Oakland". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  5. ^ "Pittsburgh Athletic Association". Accidentally Wes Anderson. Retrieved April 7, 2024.
  6. ^ "Winged Head Is Winner". The Pittsburg Press. March 10, 1918. Sports sec., p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Howard, Tom, ed. (1921). Official Ice Hockey Guide and Winter Sports Almanac 1921. Spalding's Athletic Library. New York: American Sports Publishing Co. p. 17 – via Internet Archive.
  8. ^ Belko, Mark; Aiken, Maddie (April 5, 2024). "'A unique opportunity:' Pitt trustees approve acquisition of Pittsburgh Athletic Association building". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, PA. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  9. ^ Navratil, Liz (2009-09-18). "Jake Gyllenhaal on campus". The Pitt News. Pittsburgh, PA. Retrieved 2009-10-28.[permanent dead link]
  10. ^ "Pitt students forced to abandon rented rooms at Pittsburgh Athletic Association". www.post-gazette.com. Post-Gazette. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
  11. ^ "Pittsburgh Athletic Association's liquor license revoked". www.post-gazette.com. Post-Gazette. Retrieved April 12, 2017.

External links

Media related to Pittsburgh Athletic Association at Wikimedia Commons

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