Lawrenceville added to National Register of Historic places

The U.S. Department of the Interior has added Lawrenceville — one of Pittsburgh’s oldest and trendiest neighborhoods — to the National Register of Historic Places.

Sarah Quinn, the city’s historic preservation planner, said the designation carries no restrictions for private property owners. Certain eligible buildings being rehabilitated or redeveloped would be eligible for historic tax credits, she added.

“National Register nomination and listing is purely honorary,” she said. “There are no restrictions on private property owners at all.”

Lawrenceville, founded in 1814, includes 916 acres along the Allegheny River from the Strip District to the 62nd Street Bridge. The bustling neighborhood includes such historic resources as Allegheny Cemetery dating to 1844 and remnants of the Allegheny Arsenal, which helped supply the Union Army during the Civil War.

“Lawrenceville was built into one of the city’s greatest neighborhoods through the hard work of generations of those who came before us,” said Pittsburgh City Councilwoman Deb Gross, who represents the neighborhood. “Our challenge now is to protect it for generations to come.”

The nomination was written by Angelique Bamberg of Clio Consulting, Jesse Belfast of Michael Baker International and the late Carol Peterson, a historian, writer and preservationist who lived in Lawrenceville.

“This project wouldn’t have been anywhere near as successful without (Peterson’s) vast knowledge of Lawrenceville history,” Quinn said.