Updates:
Buhl Planetarium and Carnegie Library – 2008 December
Dear
Friends: Sorry for
missing last year’s “Updates.” At the time, David Tessitor and I were very busy
trying to stop Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh’s abandonment of the nation’s
first publicly-funded Carnegie Library building, the Allegheny Regional Branch
located next-door to Buhl Planetarium. This effort was not successful as you
will read. gaw
Update
-- Buhl Planetarium: When the Children’s Museum took over
the original Buhl Planetarium for construction in 2002, several historic
artifacts were moved to The Carnegie Science Center warehouse including the
Zeiss II Planetarium Projector (oldest
operable major planetarium projector in the world!), 10-inch
Siderostat-type Refractor Telescope (at that time, second largest of its unique
type), and the large Mercator’s Projection Map of the World (considered largest
such map when installed at the 1939 World’s Fair in New York). In 2007 September,
I have corresponded with the
President of Carnegie Institute, Dr.
David M. Hillenbrand, regarding the future storage status of the historic Buhl
Planetarium artifacts. In referring to the Zeiss Projector, Siderostat
Telescope, and Mercator’s Map (the
three
artifacts with legal contracts for display and storage, between the City and
The Carnegie), Dr. Hillenbrand replied, “Before the Miller Building is razed,
we will move these items, along with many other assets residing in the Miller
Building, to another facility where they will be stored until such time as we
determine their ultimate disposition.” In April, I attempted to accompany an
official Port Authority tour of the warehouse; The Carnegie Science Center
refused me entry. I complained about this in a letter to Dr. Hillenbrand, in
which I also noted that The Carnegie had agreed in contracts with the City that
the “ultimate disposition” of the artifacts would be display in the
< https://buhlplanetarium.tripod.com/friendsofthezeiss/cityassetsCSC.html >.
In 2002,
the
Until now,
Friends of the Zeiss has been an
informal organization, as we presently do not have access to the historic Buhl
Planetarium artifacts. However, as it is now obvious that The Carnegie Science
Center has no intentions of displaying these artifacts, Friends of the Zeiss has decided to become a more formal
organization, which will include raising funds for the preservation and
possible use or display of the artifacts. We will then make the case to the
City of
To be able
to legally raise funds, it is necessary for Friends
of the Zeiss to become an official non-profit corporation. So, we are starting
the process that will lead to legal incorporation and non-profit IRS status of Friends of the Zeiss. In the past, we
have had to decline donations, due to the fact we are not a legal non-profit
organization. When our legal filings are complete and approved, we will be able
to seek foundation grants and accept donations.
Other
Buhl Planetarium-related News:
·
In time for Buhl’s 69th anniversary
this-past October, finally a plaque has been mounted near the entrance to Buhl
Planetarium announcing the building is a historic landmark. Approved by the
Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation in 2001, this plaque was mounted by
the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh. The plaque provides no legal protection to
the building. However, Friends of the Zeiss was successful in having the
building designated as a City Designated Historic Structure in 2005, which does
protect the building’s exterior.
·
With the demolition of the Science Center warehouse,
a new two-floor building is now under construction for their popular
“SportsWorks” exhibit. To meet city ordinances, the Science Center had to file
a Master Development Plan with
the City
for all future planned construction. This Master Plan includes a four-floor
addition to the main Science Center building, to be built within the next
decade. This Master Plan does not include a Siderostat Telescope Observatory, as Science Center
officials
had promised the City in 2002. After I informed the City Planning Commission of
this shortcoming, Science Center officials stated that they had not gotten to
that “level of detail” in planning for the building addition. I will continue
monitoring this process.
(More –
Page 2 of 2)
Updates:
Buhl Planetarium and Carnegie Library – 2008 December Page 2 of 2
·
The
Children’s Museum is proposing a complete reconstruction of Allegheny Square
Plaza/Park. Located in front of Buhl Planetarium, it was reconstructed from
·
Children’s Museum renovation of the original Buhl
Planetarium building included construction of a large window in the east wall
of the first floor’s Great Hall. This resulted in removal, from the exterior
wall, of a well-known astronomical inscription from the 19th Psalm of the
Bible: "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth
His handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth
knowledge." This inscription became fragments, which were left,
unorganized, on Buhl’s east lawn, providing borders for flower beds! In June,
these inscription fragments were removed from the east lawn. The Children’s
Museum management has now accepted my suggestion that this inscription be
reassembled in the rehabilitated
·
More Buhl Planetarium News: < https://buhlplanetarium.tripod.com/update/2008Buhladdendum.htm
>.
Update – Carnegie Library: On 2006 April 7, a few hours after
closing, America’s first publicly-funded Carnegie Library, the Allegheny
Regional Branch of The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh (located next-door to the
original Buhl Planetarium) endured a lightning strike on the top of the
landmark clock tower. No one was injured, but the building was damaged. About a
year later, insurance-funded repairs to the building were completed. However,
the previous August, Carnegie Library had decided to use this “Act of God” as
an excuse to close the historic library permanently and build a new library
building three blocks north.
Long-time
Carnegie Library advocate David Tessitor and I fought the permanent closing of
this historic library in September of 2006 and again in December of 2007. In both
cases, the Urban Redevelopment Authority, and later City Council, allowed
Carnegie Library to move the library out of the historic building (although
Carnegie Library plans to continue to store older books on the second floor).
The New Hazlett Theater continues to operate in the Carnegie Hall section of
the building (first Carnegie Hall ever built) and a Senior Citizens
Center continues operating in the basement (although the basement will
eventually be vacated, with the opening of a consolidated North Side Senior
Citizens Center in Riverview Park). After a 2008 May groundbreaking, actual
construction of the new North Side library began in July; it is scheduled to
open next Summer.
More information:
< http://buhlplanetarium4.tripod.com/friendsofthezeiss/archive/news.2006.html#clocktower >.
Carnegie
Library news does not get better. Over this past year, Carnegie Library of
Pittsburgh, quietly, commissioned Carnegie Mellon University to conduct a
“rightsizing” study (not available for public review) which could mean library
branch closings next year. I have informed City Council and the Allegheny
Regional Asset District Board of Carnegie Library’s possible plans to close
library branches. Without any actual threat to close a branch, no public
officials have wished to deal with this.
More information:
< http://andrewcarnegie.tripod.com/clpgh/ST-PCC-CMUCLPstudy.htm >.
And, the
precedent to close library branches has come with the announcement in November
that Philadelphia will close 11 library branches, to deal with a $1 billion
budget deficit. Four of these are historic Carnegie Libraries: Holmesburg,
Logan, Kingsessing, and Haddington. More info: < http://andrewcarnegie.tripod.com/phila/2008librarycrisis.html >.
However,
there actually is some good Carnegie Library news. Carnegie Library history
will soon be made in the suburban Atlanta town of Newnan, Georgia. After their
original downtown Carnegie Library (built in 1904) was replaced by a new
library structure at the edge of town in 1987, the original Carnegie Library
building was reused as a court house annex. A year ago, after the courts moved
out of the building, Newnan officials decided to renovate the building and
reuse it as a library !!!
The
decision of the town fathers to return the Newnan Carnegie Library building to
public library service is historic. Not only will the Newnan Carnegie Library
be the oldest Carnegie Library in the state of
More information: < http://andrewcarnegie.tripod.com/cfl.html/#newnan >
gaw
Glenn A. Walsh
Internet Web Sites - History of Buhl Planetarium: < http://www.planetarium.cc
>
Telephone: 412-561-7876 Andrew
Carnegie & Carnegie Libraries: < http://www.andrewcarnegie.cc >
E-Mail: < gawalsh@planetarium.cc > Preserving
Carnegie Libraries: < http://www.carnegielibraries.pghfree.net >