Mellon National Bank Building

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Mellon National Bank Building
Mellon National Bank Building Pittsburgh.jpg
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Location of Mellon National Bank Building in Pittsburgh
Location500 Smithfield Street (Downtown), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Coordinates 40°26′25.26″N79°59′53.36″W / 40.4403500°N 79.9981556°W / 40.4403500; -79.9981556
Built/founded1924
CPHD designatedJuly 1999 [1]
PHLF designated1976 [2]

The Mellon National Bank Building at 500 Smithfield Street in downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was completed in 1924 after Mellon acquired the property in August 1916 from the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad which had their regional offices on the site. [3]

Contents

History and architectural features

Prior to the B&O office the site was the original home to the city's first public high school (Central High), which opened in the fall of 1855. [4] The Classical-styled building was designed by architects Trowbridge & Livingston with Edward Mellon. It was added to the List of Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation Historic Landmarks in 1976, [2] and the List of City of Pittsburgh historic designations in July 1999. [1]

On July 30, 1999, May & Co. bought the structure for $9.250 million from Mellon. [5] The building's historic interior was gutted and converted into a department store despite the protests of historical preservationists. It opened as Lord & Taylor on November 1, 2000, after a $12 million refurbishment (21.2 million in 2023 dollars). [6] Lord & Taylor closed just four years later, in 2004.

On May 31, 2012 PNC Financial Services purchased the structure [7] and converted it to a call center. [8] In 2024, PNC announced their intention to sell the building. [9]

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References

  1. 1 2 "Local Historic Designations". Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation. Retrieved 2011-08-12.
  2. 1 2 Historic Landmark Plaques 1968-2009 (PDF). Pittsburgh, PA: Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation. 2010. Retrieved 2011-08-12.
  3. "Hotel Henry".
  4. http://digital.library.pitt.edu/cgi-bin/chronology/chronology_driver.pl?searchtype=ybrowse&year=1855&start_line=0.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  5. "Real Estate | Owner History | Allegheny County". Archived from the original on 2014-11-01. Retrieved 2013-06-30.
  6. "Above Bellefonte: Mellon Treasure Plundered". 26 July 2011.
  7. "PNC to purchase vacant Lord & Taylor building in Downtown Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette". Archived from the original on 2012-06-01.
  8. https://ryconinc.com/projects/500-smithfield-street-call-center/
  9. https://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/news/2024/08/06/pnc-selling-downtown-building.html