Buildings of Western PA Research at PHLF

by Lauren Eisenhart-Purvis, November 14, 2017

When I started my internship at PHLF at the end of August 2017, the photographs in “The Buildings of Western PA Research Collection” were housed in binders, which were bending and misshapen, and the collection was housed in two locations. Therefore, I helped facilitate the transfer of Ms. Donnelly’s slides and negatives from the Heinz Architectural Center at the Carnegie Museum of Art to PHLF so that the complete collection could be housed at PHLF’s James D. Van Trump Library. I then updated the finding aid and the FileMaker Pro database by adding the additional materials; re-housed all of the photographs so they would be better preserved; placed the photographs into folders and boxes; and made labels for each box so that the collection is accessible to researchers.

This is a significant collection because it contains comprehensive materials on architecture in Western Pennsylvania. It will be useful to anyone who is interested in learning more about the Pittsburgh region’s built environment. It is a resource for architectural historians, historians, preservation and community development professionals, urban planners, and any citizens who are looking to preserve and protect buildings throughout this region and prepare National Register nominations for individual structures or districts. Re-housing the photographs, and adding the slides and negatives, has made this collection more complete and useful.