{"nrhp_refnum":"86002718","name":"Woolslair Elementary School","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Fortieth St. and Liberty Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Pittsburgh","county":"Allegheny County","state":"PA","lat":40.46335072100004,"lon":-79.95723093699996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1986-09-30","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Education","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Woolslair Elementary School is a two-story orange brick school building on a sloping corner site in Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, built in 1897. It was designed by Samuel T. McClaren and built by Wm. Kerr Sons.","why_significant":"The school is cited as an excellent example of schools built under the ward-based school board system of the 1890s. Its careful use of materials and detailing is described as quite distinctive, and it retains a very strong sense of its original character despite later alterations.","narrative":"Built in 1897 as an elementary school in Pittsburgh's Howard Sub-district, Woolslair sits on a sloping corner lot enclosed by stone walling and iron fencing on three sides. Its two stories of orange brick rise from a raised, battered stone basement under hipped slate roofs ringed by a metal cornice. The facade is symmetrical, with rounded stone arches at the first story, broad entries with egg and dart moldings, and a second-floor Palladian window above each entry. Inside, patterned tile floors, original doors with high transoms and paneled hallways survive, and the polygonal rear section houses an auditorium and gymnasium. Designed by Samuel T. McClaren, the building is valued for its careful materials and detailing and for its strong retention of original character. Later changes include rear additions from 1961, replacement windows, and a partly converted auditorium.","period_of_significance":"1881-1900","architect_builder":"Samuel T. McClaren (architect); Wm. Kerr Sons (builder)","architectural_style":"Romanesque Revival","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Good condition; the school has always been an elementary school apart from high school students housed there from 1912-1916.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:33.036443-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/86002718.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86002718/f8db3c781a-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86002718/f8db3c781a-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Lee Paxton","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:WoolslairElementarySchool.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Lee Paxton</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:WoolslairElementarySchool.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71992174","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woolslair_Elementary_School","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q8033934"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/allegheny-county/woolslair-elementary-school-86002718/"}