Our first stop in our architectural tour of Pittsburgh is at the Frick Building. Located in downtown Pittsburgh on the corner of Grant Street and Fifth Avenue, the building was completed in March 1902. Built by Henry Clay Frick, it was the first of his numerous real estate investments in the Grant Street area. The 20 story building was built on the site of St Peter’s Episcopal Church. The church was relocated to Oakland to make way for the construction of the Frick Building.

The building was designed by Daniel Burnham of D.H. Burnham & Company of Chicago. In this building Frick created a personal monument and his office. The top floor (20th) was originally used as Frick’s office and meeting space and social club for wealthy industrialists. This upper floor also included an outdoor space that went around the perimeter of the building. On the 19th floor below Frick had a personal shower that still there today but is not operational.

More interesting facts

• At the time of building it was the tallest building in Pittsburgh
• The building has a steelwork structure with a granite facing – brought to the site via horse and buggy
• Because of the lowering of Grant Street the main level is what used to be the basement
• The building height was designed to be taller than that of neighboring building owned by Andrew Carnegie
• Frick’s goal was to cast a permanent shadow over Carnegie’s building (they were in a feud after the breakup of their business relationship)
• It is on the National Register of Historic Places

Frick Building interior as viewed from Mezzanine level.

• Two lion sculptures flank the entryway off of Grant Street
• The lion sculptures were by Alexander Phimister Proctor
• The lobby features a stained glass window by John La Farge called Fortune on Her Wheel
• After Frick’s death a memorial bust by Malvina Hoffman was added to the lobby area
• White marble and bronze details are found throughout the building’s corridors
• At the time of the building, the shower on the 19th floor was the highest above ground level a shower had been installed due to difficulty pumping water that high
• Many of the original doors in the building still have the bronze door knobs which feature a stamped “F” on them
• At one time the washrooms (restrooms) for the entire building were located on the 10th floor.
• A mail chute can be found on each floor and is still used today to drop letters into the mailbox
• Four bronze telephone booths can still be found on the main floor

Want to know more?

More about the Frick Building

The following book was used for some of the information in this article: Pittsburgh’s Landmark Architecture The Historic Buildings of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County by Walter C. Kidney