Tour Dates:
Saturday, May 6, 2023
10:00am - 11:30am
The Swissvale Avenue Edgewood tour of last season was so popular, our intrepid tour guides are back with an extension of the original! Whether you are new or a repeat attendee on this guided tour, you won’t be disappointed.
We'll start our walk by focusing on the sole extant Pittsburgh building of a great American architect that we bet many of you have not heard of prior to this tour. Then we will take our purposeful jaunt along lovely Maple Avenue widely recognized as one of the most beguiling streets of early 20th century residential architecture in Pittsburgh.
On our walk we will pay close attention to more than a half dozen dwellings representing various styles which were popular in the early years of the last century. In a twist from the usual walking tour where the guide does all of the talking you will be encouraged through an interactive presentation to test your own observations skills about the styles of the dwellings. By the end of the tour it is our hope that you will come away with maybe a smidgeon of architectural knowledge and a big heaping of new appreciation of the joy of walking city streets and seeing old houses as if it was for the first time.
TOUR HOST BIO:
After a 40-year career in international logistics and a lifelong interest in history & architecture, James Weddell has been a docent with Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation since 2014. In that capacity he has given and helped develop tours, and was a house docent at Wilkinsburg's Vacant House Tours in 2015 & 2016. James has also given numerous presentations supporting fundraising on behalf of the restoration of the Wilkinsburg Railroad Station.
Robert Jucha has participated as a volunteer docent for the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation for 13 years and has given numerous walking tours of Downtown Pittsburgh, Oakland and Shadyside during that time. Robert has also taught classes on Pittsburgh architecture and neighborhood histories for both CMU Osher and Pitt Osher.
Pat DiRienzo has a long involvement in the Regent Square community. Her contributions were recognized as part of the series, "90 Neighborhoods, 90 Good Stories", produced by WESA 90.5 in 2017. She has led and developed architectural & historical tours for multiple organizations.
TOUR STARTS: 455 Maple Avenue
TOUR ENDS: Intersection of Maple and Edgewood Avenues
This is a walking tour: 1 mile of walking; tour route is almost entirely uphill.
There are parts of this tour that are not wheelchair-accessible.
Photography is allowed.
Guided Walking Tour