Table Of ContentGreater Park Place Neighborhood Association
Regent Square Civic Association
Home Improvement Workshop 2014
Exterior Restoration
and Renovation:
Maintaining Your
Home’s
Architectural Style
Greater Park Place Neighborhood Association
Regent Square Civic Association
Home Improvement Workshop 2014
The purpose of this workshop is to:
• Acquaint you with the various historical/architectural home styles typically found in
the East End of Pittsburgh (focusing on the Greater Park Place and Regent Square
neighborhoods), and allow you to understand the defining architectural features of
your home.
• Develop your ability to envision a practical solution – whether it’s renovation or
restoration – appropriate to the style and character of your home, respectful of
your budget, and your ability to realistically execute the project successfully (by
yourself or with the help of an architect and/or contractor).
• Understand how existing conditions affect the design approach (and what to re-
think when matching or replicating construction and detailing is cost-prohibitive).
• Envision exterior additions or modifications to the home that are appropriate to the
massing, style and character of the original building.
Greater Park Place Neighborhood Association
Regent Square Civic Association
Home Improvement Workshop 2014
• Provide and overview of traditional materials and their modern replacements.
• Briefly touch upon principles of site planning and landscape design.
Greater Park Place Neighborhood Association
Regent Square Civic Association
Home Improvement Workshop 2014
Historic
Historic
Architectural Styles
Architectural
Styles
Greater Park Place Neighborhood Association
Regent Square Civic Association
Home Improvement Workshop 2014
Historic
• Most homes in the East End, from the turn of the century through the 40’s, were
designed based on historic/traditional styles.
Architectural Styles
• There are very few “pure” examples of historical styles. Most homes constructed
were builder/developer homes, and the various historic styles popular at the time
were adapted and modified by the builder in response to the demands of the
homeowners’ of the time, and expedient methods of construction.
• Styles found in the neighborhood include: Queen Anne (Victorian), American
foursquare, Georgian revival, Tudor revival, Craftsman/Bungalow style, along with a
few examples of Beaux Arts and Spanish Colonial. Many homes/apartments can’t
be categorized easily, and are probably best defined as “traditional”, having a
blend of many historical characteristics.
• The neighborhood also has a number of unique homes and apartments by Fredrick
G. Scheibler (who evolved an idiosyncratic personal style based on English Arts and
Crafts and Viennese Secessionist influences), and Craftsman-influenced homes by
the developer E. B. Hulley (the popular and distinctive Hulley houses).
Greater Park Place Neighborhood Association
Regent Square Civic Association
Home Improvement Workshop 2014
Eccentric Style - Old Heidelberg
• Derived from several different
styles.
• Here the influence of the Arts
and Crafts movement can be
seen in the exposed timber.
• Nature themed details and use
of decorative arts on the
façade (see inserts) make
reference to the Viennese
Secessionist movement.
Greater Park Place Neighborhood Association
Regent Square Civic Association
Home Improvement Workshop 2014
Eccentric Style - Scheibler
Apartments
• Exterior material choice is stucco,
signaling a nod towards the
Viennese Secessionist movement.
• Details and some material
choices show influences of the
Arts and Crafts Movement.
Greater Park Place Neighborhood Association
Regent Square Civic Association
Home Improvement Workshop 2014
Hulley Houses
• Similar homes built by a single
developer along Craftsman
lines, but adopted for
Pittsburgh’s weather.
• These homes were well built
and affordable allowing many
to realize the “American
Dream”.
• While they demonstrated
cutting edge building
technology at the time, most
have been updated in unique
ways to meet modern needs.
Greater Park Place Neighborhood Association
Regent Square Civic Association
Home Improvement Workshop 2014
Victorian
• Inspired by the houses built in
England during the reign of
Queen Victoria.
• Typically 2 - 2½ Stories.
• Articulation of the façade is
usually achieved in the form of
bay windows and a
accentuation of the roof. Color
is also used as a design feature,
but not as important as with
the later Queen Anne style.
Greater Park Place Neighborhood Association
Regent Square Civic Association
Home Improvement Workshop 2014
Queen Anne (Victorian)
• Derived from the French style
“Second Empire”.
• Known for polychrome, often
vibrant color schemes.
• Repetitive and intricate details
often mass produced (see
insert).
• Often 2½ stories tall, usually
very large, especially when
compared to the Craftsman
style that was soon to come.
