Mellon National Bank Building

For the building in Westmoreland County, see Citizens National Bank of Latrobe.
Mellon National Bank Building
Mellon National Bank Building is located in Pittsburgh
Mellon National Bank Building
Location of Mellon National Bank Building in Pittsburgh
Location500 Smithfield Street (Downtown), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Coordinates40°26′25.26″N 79°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]

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]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mellon National Bank Building.
  1. ^ a b "Local Historic Designations". Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation. Retrieved 2011-08-12.
  2. ^ a b 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