Chuck Darwin<p><span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://mastodon.world/@backpackandsnorkel" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>backpackandsnorkel</span></a></span> </p><p>Pittsburgh originally had two public conservatories, <br>both established by Henry Phipps, Jr., <br>childhood friend of Andrew Carnegie <br>and second largest shareholder in Carnegie Steel. </p><p>In 1886, Phipps donated $25,000 to establish a glasshouse in his hometown of <a href="https://c.im/tags/Allegheny" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Allegheny</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/City" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>City</span></a><br>—today’s North Side.</p><p>This first Phipps Conservatory became a very popular destination. <br>It has undergone many iterations, <br>and we know the site today as the National Aviary. </p><p>The 9-room Phipps Conservatory in Oakland’s <a href="https://c.im/tags/Schenley" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Schenley</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Park" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Park</span></a> opened in December 1893 as another gift from Henry Phipps, Jr.<br> —this time to the City of Pittsburgh. </p><p>It showcased many plants that had been on display at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. </p><p>THE FRICK GREENHOUSE </p><p>The <a href="https://c.im/tags/Frick" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Frick</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Greenhouse" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Greenhouse</span></a> was built in 1897 <br>when Mr. Frick hired the Pittsburgh architectural firm of Alden &amp; Harlow to add to his estate. </p><p>It wasn’t the first such structure at Clayton, but this new one was meant to be a showpiece. </p><p>According to the papers “no expense was spared” and it was described as " . . . one of the most modern public or private ones in the state of Pennsylvania, and possibly in the United States.” </p><p>Alden &amp; Harlow worked with Lord &amp; Burnham, an American company <br>renowned for its conservatory design. </p><p>Among other efforts, The New York state-based Lord &amp; Burnham created the Schenley Phipps buildings, <br>worked on the Golden Gate Conservatory, <br>and designed the conservatory at The New York Botanical Garden. </p><p>Glass houses like the Frick building were often built of durable cypress or white pine, with structural elements of iron or steel.</p><p><a href="https://www.thefrickpittsburgh.org/Story-PITTSBURGH-GILDED-AGE-CONSERVATORIES" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">thefrickpittsburgh.org/Story-P</span><span class="invisible">ITTSBURGH-GILDED-AGE-CONSERVATORIES</span></a></p>