THE BRIDGE OF SIGHS | PHOTO BY RUBY SIEFKEN

It was during the 1950s that Pittsburgh leaders put the brakes on the ubiquitous wrecking ball that was sweeping across America in the name of urban renewal to replace old buildings with characterless structures. The result is the preservation of some of our most exquisite architecture, which is presented on several walking tours sponsored by the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation.

One of these tours, “Downtown’s Best: Special Places and Spaces,” provides a comprehensive look at a variety of architectural styles in the Golden Triangle, from exterior brickwork and building spires to the intricate details on elevator doors and heating vents.

This tour is one of six featured in our Visitors Guide. Explore the other tours here.

Our guide on a cloudy June morning, Lancaster native Tracy Myers, has led tours and trained docents for a little under five years. The self-proclaimed “architecture geek” and historian describes her expertise as practical experience combined with a passion for architecture and cities.

“Architecture is not an art, it’s a way of expressing something about yourself,” Myers said before the tour began. This tour is not only popular among guests but her personal favorite.

Surprisingly, nine of the 11 in our group were from Pittsburgh. We began at the Pittsburgh City Council Clerk’s Office in the City-County building before we headed into the central courtyard of the Allegheny County Courthouse, which was designed by H.H. Richardson in the Romanesque Revival style.

ALLEGHENY COUNTY COURTHOUSE | PHOTO BY RUBY SIEFKEN

As we entered the courtyard, Myers reminded us to look up to catch each building’s intricate details. Myers described the building’s architecture as “rhythmic” — the windows are patterned to the beat of a certain rhythm, climbing toward the top of the building in alternating shapes and brickwork patterns.

The next stop took us into the Frick Building, built by industrialist Henry Clay Frick and opened in 1902. Myers said the Frick Building had a masculine quality when it was built — everyone who worked there was male, even secretaries. The few female presences that counterbalanced the building’s power and strength included the stained-glass “painting” of Fortuna, the goddess of luck in Ancient Rome.

THE CITY-COUNTY BUILDING | PHOTO BY RUBY SIEFKEN

Myers described buildings as a form of spoken expression in the language of architecture.

We popped into the Union Trust Building, admiring its stained-glass ceiling, before stopping in Mellon Square. We were surrounded by what Myers called “an architectural panorama” — the former Alcoa headquarters with its striking aluminum frame, the U.S. Steel Tower (Pittsburgh’s tallest building) and the brick 108-year-old Omni William Penn Hotel.

The next stop, First Presbyterian Church of Pittsburgh on Sixth Avenue, introduced us to Neo-Gothic style — dark, worn stone with several pointed spires, five arches lining three wooden doors and a towering stained glass window.

Inside, rows of etched pews made a convenient resting spot for our group. The wooden doors behind the altar stretch from floor to vaulted ceiling. Myers said they weigh 2 tons each but can be opened with little effort due to their engineering and weight distribution.

My tour companion, Evelyn Jacob, tried her hand at opening the hefty doors and was able to slide them along their metal track with relative ease. The church’s early 20th century construction made this masterful engineering even more impressive.

We walked down Penn Avenue next, passing Heinz Hall on our left. Fellow tour-goer Ellen Sussna-Heyman said an enthusiastic “hello” to one of the bricks embedded in the pavement.

She said she purchased an engraved brick several years ago in dedication to her father, who brought his family to the symphony every Sunday for most of her Pittsburgh childhood.

“The theater was my father’s life,” Sussna-Heyman said. “His greatest disappointment was that I hated classical music.”

PPG PLAZA | PHOTO BY RUBY SIEFKEN

The tour wrapped up, after about 2½ hours, in PPG Plaza. Myers told us the buildings are examples of Postmodernism, with their mirrored frames with four points scratching the clouds of the classic-Pittsburgh overcast sky.

While I’m not an architecture fanatic, I would recommend this tour to history buffs, tourists or anyone who enjoys urban architectural beauty. It’s safe to say, I left the tour feeling like a Pittsburgh expert.

PHLF offers weekly and monthly city, neighborhood and bus tours. The Downtown walking tour costs $30; you can get tickets at phlf.org.