Gardner Steel Conference Center (GSCC) is an academic building of the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is composed of seventeen undergraduate and graduate schools and colle ...

and a

contributing property In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic dist ...

to the Schenley Farms National Historic District and a

Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation The Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation (PHLF) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1964 to support the preservation of historic buildings and neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. In 1966, PHLF established the Revolvi ...

Historic Landmark. An Early Modern structure built from 1911-1912 by architects

Kiehnel and Elliott The architectural firm of Kiehnel and Elliott was established in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1906. The firm did substantial work in Florida, and moved to Miami in 1922. From 1926, it was known as Kiehnel, Elliott and Chalfant. Richard Kiehnel ...

, has been noted for its capital ornamentation over the entrance doors, and the wave-like shapes repeated across the cornice which likely derive from the German art nouveau movement

jugendstil (; "Youth Style") was an artistic movement, particularly in the decorative arts, that was influential primarily in Germany, Austria and elsewhere in Europe to a lesser extent from about 1895 until about 1910. It was the German and Austrian cou ...

. The building originally served as the Central Turnverein, a German-American social and athletic association, and later known as the Central Athletic Association. It served as the site of various athletic contests, including some involving the University of Pittsburgh. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, it was used to house those in the Student Army Training Corps. Following the war, a severe space shortage at the

Dental School A dental school (school of dental medicine, school of dentistry, dental college) is a tertiary educational institution—or part of such an institution—that teaches dental medicine to prospective dentists and potentially other dental auxiliari ...

prompted the university to purchase the building in 1920 for use as a dental clinic and infirmary. Known then as the Infirmary Building, a annex was erected in 1922 creating enough space in the building to hold 200 dental chairs. The Gardner Steel Conference Center, as it is now known, is currently home to classrooms, computer labs, the Academic Resource Center, and the Innovation Institute. In 1995, the

School of Engineering Engineering education is the activity of teaching knowledge and principles to the professional development, professional practice of engineering. It includes an initial education (Diploma in Engineering, Dip.Eng.)and Bachelor of Engineering, ( ...

and the Department of Mathematics collaborated on a $250,000 joint project that created a laboratory for the computer instruction of calculus. The Gardner Steel Conference Center is the former home to the Pitt Club, a University of Pittsburgh faculty and staff club defunct since 2003. Previously, it also served for a time as home of the General Alumni Association (now the Pitt Alumni Association based in Alumni Hall). The Gardner Steel Conference Center is named after Gardner Steele, a Pitt alumnus and investor in the oil fields of

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

. He matriculated in 1891 and was a member of one of the first intervarsity football teams and also held the record for the dash while at Pitt. When he died in 1928, he left the bulk of a $300,000 estate to the university.

References

External links

Gardner Steel Conference Center on Pitt's virtual Campus Tour

Office of Technology Management - Innovation Commercialization

Calculus/Engineering Computer Lab
{{Pittsburgh Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation Historic Landmarks University of Pittsburgh academic buildings Historic district contributing properties in Pennsylvania Kiehnel and Elliott buildings National Register of Historic Places in Pittsburgh