The Remnants Of Abandoned Larimer School In Pittsburgh Are Hauntingly Beautiful
By Beth Price-Williams|Updated on September 25, 2023(Originally published January 31, 2023)
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Beth Price-Williams
Author
A professional writer for more than two decades, Beth has lived in nearly a dozen states – from Missouri and Virginia to Connecticut and Vermont – and Toronto, Canada. In addition to traveling extensively in the U.S. and the U.K., she has a BA in Journalism from Point Park University (PA), a MA in Holocaust & Genocide Studies from Stockton University (NJ), and a Master of Professional Writing from Chatham University (PA). A writer and editor for Only In Your State since 2016, Beth grew up in and currently lives outside of Pittsburgh and when she’s not writing or hanging out with her bunnies, budgies, and chinchilla, she and her daughter are out chasing waterfalls.
Editor’s Note: The formerly abandoned Larimer School has been transformed into the Cornerstone Village Apartments. Keep reading, though, for the history behind one of the most fascinating abandoned schools in Pennsylvania.
Standing stoically in the Pittsburgh neighborhood of Larimer, the abandoned Larimer School lays claim to a storied past, a tragic period of abandonment, and the possibility of a pretty amazing future. The Larimer School was abandoned for 40 years, and the former elementary school has earned a spot on the National Register of Historic Places because of its storied past. Since then the property has been revitalized into additional mixed-income housing for the neighborhood.
St. Louis-based company McCormack Baron Salazar had been working on an extensive housing development in the neighborhood of the Larimer School, and their final stage of development included rehabilitating the historic property.
But before the property was turned into part of this new development, it had a fascinating history, and then decades of abandonment.
Designed by Ulysses J. Lincoln Peoples, a well-known architect in Pittsburgh, Larimer School's construction costs tallied $80,000 in 1896 due, in part, to the marble wainscoting and the terrazzo floors.
It was the cream of the crop at its time, illustrating all kinds of innovation and architectural prestige.
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The Romanesque-style building earned its name from William Larimer, Jr., the founder of Denver City in Colorado and the entrepreneur behind Pittsburgh's first Conestoga Wagon business.
There was some debate about the addition of an elaborate 125-foot high campanile (Italian-style bell tower) with the school bell in it. For all the investment that went into the building, it's tragic that it didn't have a longer legacy.
Architect George Rowland designed the final touches to Larimer School – the auditorium (check out the video at the end of the article for a glimpse at the auditorium today) and the gym.
Shortly thereafter, the beautiful stained glass windows were removed from the building and sold, a tragic affront to the architectural wonders of the building. Six years later, the hauntingly beautiful building earned a spot on the National Register of Historic Places.
Click the play button below to go on a haunting tour of the formerly abandoned Larimer School.
