Gallagher-Kieffer House facts for kids
The Gallagher-Kieffer House in March 2020
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 Location in Pittsburgh
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| Location | 234 North Dithridge St., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA |
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| Coordinates | 40°27′00″N 79°57′08″W / 40.45010°N 79.95217°W |
| Built/founded | 1893 |
| Architectural style(s) | Shingle |
The Gallagher-Kieffer House is an old and important building in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It stands at 234 North Dithridge Street in the North Oakland area. This house was built in 1893. It shows off the Shingle architectural style.
The house was once home to Patrick F. Gallagher and his family. Patrick was the president of the Duquesne Construction Company. This was from 1931 to 1938. In 2020, the house was suggested to become a City of Pittsburgh Historic Landmark. This means it is a special building that should be protected.
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History of the Gallagher-Kieffer House
The land where the Gallagher-Kieffer House now stands has an interesting past. It was once owned by Isabella W. C. Comingo. She got the land from her father, Neville B. Craig. He was a lawyer for Pittsburgh and also ran a newspaper.
Isabella started to sell her land. But then, a sad event happened. Her two sons died in an accident. After this, her sister, Annie Craig Davison, received parts of the land. This included the spot where the Gallagher-Kieffer House is today.
Building the House
Annie Davison hired a company called Bennett & Stitely. They built the house in 1893. It might have been for her daughter, Mary Davison Reed, who had just gotten married. When it was first built, the house number was 226 North Dithridge Street. This number was changed to 234 in 1918. This was likely to make the street numbers more organized.
Neither Annie nor Mary lived in the house. Records from 1990 show they lived at a different address. Annie died in 1906, and Mary died in 1908.
Early Residents of the House
The first family to live in the Gallagher-Kieffer House was the McClelland family. Reverend Henry T. McClelland was a pastor. He and his family lived there from 1894 to 1904. They had four children who were all going to school.
After the McClellands moved, the Larkin family lived in the house. They were there from 1906 to 1911. Robert Larkin was the head of this family. He worked as a clerk and lived with his four sisters. After the Larkins left, there are no clear records of who lived in the house next. This was until the Gallagher family bought it in 1914.
The Gallagher Family's Time in the House
The Gallagher family lived in the house for a very long time. Patrick F. Gallagher and Katharine Kieffer got married in 1901. They soon moved to Pittsburgh. Patrick worked for his brother's company, Duquesne Construction Company. This company built many famous buildings in Pittsburgh. These include Sacred Heart Church and St. Paul’s Cathedral Grade School.
The couple bought the house on May 14, 1914. They moved in with their six children. They later had four more children while living there. By 1930, eight of their ten children still lived in the house. Two of them were teachers.
Patrick F. Gallagher became the president of Duquesne Construction Company in 1931. The house shows how important he became. For example, there is a special plaster sculpture above the dining room fireplace. It is a picture of St. Benedict. This sculpture was a model for a bronze one in St. Boniface Roman Catholic Church. Duquesne Construction Company built that church. Patrick F. Gallagher died in 1938. Katherine Kieffer Gallagher died in 1952. Members of the Gallagher family still live in the house today.
Architecture of the House
The Gallagher-Kieffer House is a great example of the Victorian period Shingle Style of architecture. This style was popular in the late 1800s. The house has a steeply sloped roof. Its second-floor walls are covered in shingles. It also has a porch built right into the house.
The house does not have a lot of fancy decorations. These features are all common for the Shingle style. This house is special in its Pittsburgh neighborhood, North Oakland. Many other homes there are built in a different style. The Gallagher-Kieffer House also has many beautiful stained glass windows.
Gallery
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An excerpt from a 1904 plat map showing the Gallagher-Kieffer House between "M.B. Reed" and J.W. Friday.
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The Gallagher-Kieffer House ca. 1920.
