Automobiles were rare in 1904, and thus Edgewood was quite isolated and self-contained. Edgewood residents took the train to and from work. Any athletic, social or cultural activity in the evenings had to be within walking distance. This need was the genesis of The Edgewood Club.
The Edgewood Club was incorporated on July 2, 1904.
So, it was obvious that any clubhouse site would have to be central to the community in order to serve its membership. The 51 charter members concocted a plan to purchase a residence on Maple Avenue and then they adapted it to include bowling alleys, a billiard room, a card room, a ballroom and a stage. Twelve years later, with the Edgewood Club and the borough both growing, the property was sold to the borough and was used to build a high school, on what is now the site of Edgewood Primary School.
The Edgewood Club was able to move to the corner of West Swissvale and Pennwood, when the owner offered it at a reduced rate with the stipulation that it be used both for a library and a club. Which was how the
Edgewood Club and C.C. Mellor Library came to coexist.
In 1916, prominent architect Edward B. Lee designed a Spanish-Mission style structure on the corner of Pennwood and West Swissvale Avenues. The barrel-shaped red tile roof with Alamo like white stucco walls, stout columns, and heavy exposed timbers accentuates the building as a focal point within the community. According to Franklin Toker, author of Pittsburgh: An Urban Portrait, it is "a public monument...altogether one of the best public buildings in the city."
The coexistence of public and private spaces has been evident from the onset, and it continues today. Through the years the community has used the facility for numerous occasions, and yet, the Edgewood Club remains a club.
The building is officially controlled by a Board of Trustees, originally comprised of two borough officials, four Edgewood Club board members, two at large Edgewood residents and the mayor.
Today, the building remains controlled by a Board of Trustees, comprised of four Edgewood Club board members and five at large community members.
The Edgewood Club circa 2024
.
Comments