| Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation | |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1964 |
| Type | non-profit |
| Purpose/focus | To support and encourage the preservation of historic buildings, landmarks, districts, structures, and neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. |
| Location | 100 West Station Square Drive, Suite 450 Pittsburgh, PA 15219-1134 |
| Region served | Primarily Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, Pennsylvania |
| Website | http://www.phlf.org/ |
The Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation (PHLF) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1964 to support the preservation of historic buildings and neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
PHLF is known nation-wide for its pioneering work in restoring inner-city neighborhoods without dislocating the people who live there. In 1966, PHLF established the Revolving Fund for Preservation with a $100,000 grant from the Sarah Scaife Foundation. PHLF used the grant to purchase, restore and renovate historic inner-city properties primarily in the North Side and South Side neighborhoods of Pittsburgh, which were rented or sold to low- and moderate-income families. PHLF's Revolving Fund now provides loans to more than 30 Pittsburgh neighborhood organizations and technical assistance to preservation groups throughout the United States.
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PHLF was the first historic preservation group in the nation to undertake a countywide survey of architectural landmarks, which Co-Founders Arthur P. Ziegler, Jr.[1] and James D. Van Trump did in 1965.[2] As a result of a more comprehensive 1984 PHLF survey, more than 6,000 architecturally and historically significant sites in Allegheny County have been documented,and nearly 400 bear a PHLF historic landmark plaque.
The trustees, staff and members of PHLF have successfully campaigned to save such landmarks as the North Side Post Office (which later became the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh), the Union Station rotunda in downtown Pittsburgh, the Neill Log House in Schenley Park, the Burtner Stone House in Harrison Township, the Rachel Carson Homestead in Springdale and the Neville House in Collier Township.
With the help of a grant from the Allegheny Foundation in 1976, PHLF adapted five historic Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad buildings in Station Square for new use and built a hotel, a dock for the Gateway Clipper Fleet, and parking areas. Station Square is now one of Pittsburgh's premiere attractions. It reflects a $100 million investment from all sources, with the lowest public cost and highest taxpayer return of any major renewal project in the Pittsburgh region since the 1950s.
The foundation's historic plaque program was begun in 1968, and since that time it has awarded over 500 plaques to designate significant historical structures within Allegheny County.[3]