Gardner Steel Conference Center

Gardner Steel Conference Center (GSCC) is an academic building of the University of Pittsburgh and a contributing property to the Schenley Farms National Historic District[3][4] and a Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation Historic Landmark.[2]

Gardner Steel Conference Center
Gardner Steel Conference Center at the University of Pittsburgh
Coordinates40°26′40.20″N 79°57′27.91″W
Built1911-1912
ArchitectKiehnel & Elliott
Architectural styleEarly Modern
Part ofSchenley Farms Historic District (ID83002213[1])
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJuly 22, 1983
Designated PHLF2007[2]
The transom of the Thackeray Avenue entrance

An Early Modern structure[3] built from 1911-1912 by architects Kiehnel and Elliott,[5] has been noted for its capital ornamentation over the entrance doors, and the wave-like shapes repeated across the cornice which likely derive from the German art nouveau movement jugendstil.[6] The building originally served as the Central Turnverein, a German-American social and athletic association, and later known as the Central Athletic Association.[7] It served as the site of various athletic contests, including some involving the University of Pittsburgh. During World War I, it was used to house those in the Student Army Training Corps.[8] Following the war, a severe space shortage at the Dental School prompted the university to purchase the building in 1920 for use as a dental clinic and infirmary.[9] Known then as the Infirmary Building, a 2,500-square-foot (230 m2) annex was erected in 1922 creating enough space in the building to hold 200 dental chairs.[10]

The Gardner Steel Conference Center, as it is now known, is currently home to classrooms, computer labs, the Academic Resource Center,[11] and the Innovation Institute.[12] In 1995, the School of Engineering and the Department of Mathematics collaborated on a $250,000 joint project that created a 2,300-square-foot (210 m2) laboratory for the computer instruction of calculus.[13] The Gardner Steel Conference Center is the former home to the Pitt Club, a University of Pittsburgh faculty and staff club defunct since 2003.[14] Previously, it also served for a time as home of the General Alumni Association (now the Pitt Alumni Association based in Alumni Hall).[15]

The Gardner Steel Conference Center is named after Gardner Steele, a Pitt alumnus and investor in the oil fields of Oklahoma. He matriculated in 1891 and was a member of one of the first intervarsity football teams and also held the record for the 100-yard (91 m) dash while at Pitt.[16] When he died in 1928, he left the bulk of a $300,000 estate to the university.[17]

References
View from Thackeray Street
  • Starrett, Agnes Lynch (1937). Through one hundred and fifty years: the University of Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press.
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. "Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation announces Historic Building and Landscape Designations". Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation. 2007-06-27. Retrieved 2009-07-10.
  3. Mann, Christina, "National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination Form: Schenley Farms Historic District" (PDF), Cultural Resources Geographic Information System, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, retrieved 2010-10-11
  4. Saja, Mike (1997-01-23). "Hearing set on historic landmark nomination for two Pitt buildings". University Times. University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2010-10-10.
  5. Kidney, Walter C. (2005). Images of America: Oakland. Arcadia Publishing. p. 74. ISBN 0-7385-3867-1. Retrieved 2010-10-11.
  6. Levine, Marty (December 8, 2016). "Campus architecture: Delighting in the details". University Times. 49 (8). Retrieved June 3, 2019.
  7. Oakland and the Hill District: Final Report (PDF), Homestead, PA: Rivers of Steel, p. 28, retrieved 2010-10-11
  8. Alberts, Robert C. (1986). Pitt: The Story of the University of Pittsburgh, 1787-1987. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press. p. 10. ISBN 0-8229-1150-7. Retrieved 2010-10-11.
  9. Starrett, Agnes Lynch (1937). Through One Hundred and Fifty Years: The University of Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press. p. 391. Retrieved 2010-10-11.
  10. McCamey, Meade; Geer, F. D., eds. (1924). "Dentistry: History". The Owl. 18. Pittsburgh, PA: The Junior Class of the University of Pittsburgh. p. 45. Retrieved 2010-10-11.
  11. Webteam, University of Pittsburgh Communications Services. "Academic Resource Center | The Dietrich School of Arts & Sciences - Undergraduate Studies | University of Pittsburgh". www.asundergrad.pitt.edu. Retrieved 2016-09-27.
  12. "About - University of Pittsburgh Innovation Institute". Retrieved 2016-09-27.
  13. "Progress reported on University building, renovation projects". University Times. 28 (2). Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh. 1995-09-14. Retrieved 2010-10-11.
  14. Thomas, Mary Ann (2005-04-28). "Faculty, staff voice support for club". University Times. 37 (17). Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2010-10-11.
  15. "Philadelphia Architects and Buildings: Office of Alumni Affairs". PHMC Cultural Resources Database. Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. Retrieved 2010-10-11.
  16. Rankin, H. H. (May 1896). "Athletics". The Western University Courant. Allegheny, PA: Western University of Pennsylvania. 11 (9): 13. Retrieved 2010-01-12.
  17. Starrett, Agnes Lynch (1937). Through One Hundred and Fifty Years: The University of Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press. p. 200. Retrieved 2010-10-11.
Preceded by
Allegheny Observatory		 University of Pittsburgh Buildings
Gardner Steel Conference Center
Constructed: 1911-1912		 Succeeded by
O'Hara Student Center
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