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| Holmes Hall |
The Allegheny West Neighborhood consists of only eight
blocks on the North Side of Pittsburgh but it’s rich in history with several restored Victorian homes from the 1800’s. I learned
some new things about Pittsburgh’s
past and discovered
a vast private toy train collection when I helped as a guide for my friend whose home was part of the Old Allegheny Victorian Christmas House Tour. A house tour is an intimate way to explore architecture and lifestyles of the past and present.
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| Calvary United Methodist Church |
Reflection
There were mansions to modest homes on the tour. The tour
started at Calvary United Methodist Church with its French Gothic deign and its
impressive Tiffany windows. Some homes
preserved the Victorian historical décor and
others, in contrast, had a modern design. Nevertheless, what struck me the
most was that the home owners
appreciated the home's past. Although their renovations changed the
interior, they realized
that they were just the caretaker of these historical buildings that were
standing long before they owned them.
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| White and Black Scandinavian Design |
The last mansion, Holmes Hall, had beautiful walnut woodwork, a carved walnut
staircase, hand painted ceiling murals and a ball room! Notwithstanding all this, it housed a private train collection. There were two (2)
floors of rare toy trains from floor to ceiling.
You saw trains, trains and more trains! My father who builds model trains
appreciated this rare collection, confiding that many of the trains in the collection were
ones that he had only read about in his train books! This private collection is open to the public two (2) times
a year- on the Christmas tour and on the up-coming Allegheny West Home & Garden Tour in June 2016.
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| Enjoying the Toy Train Collection at Holmes Hall with dad |
House tours are a visual of the past and their 100 year survival is a reminder that we are just passing through the time line. Try one of these up- coming tours
in 2016: Allegheny West Home and Garden Tour (June 2016) Observatory Hill (June
6, 2016), Brighton Heights (June 12, 2016), Manchester (August, 2016), Mexican War Streets (September,2016), Deutchtown (Fall, 2016) and the next Allegheny
West Victorian House Christmas Tour (Dec 9 & 10, 2016).
Spiritual Reflection
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| Lionel Trains- floor to ceiling |
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| Being a tour guide |
Spiritual Reflection
How do you know what
will happen tomorrow? For your life is like the morning fog-it’s here a little
while, then its gone. (James 4: 14)
Other Sources
Allegheny West http://alleghenywest.org/
A Summer Evening in Old Allegheny West http://alleghenywest.org/tour/a-tour-tasting-in-old-allegheny/
Observatory Hill http://www.observatoryhill.net/
Mexican War streets http://www.mexicanwarstreets.org/what-we-do
