When I walk the streets of Mt. Lebanon, admiring the distinctive and beautiful old houses, I like to think of the lives of people who lived in them over the years. There were graduations and weddings and Christmas celebrations and Thanksgiving dinners here, long before I was born. Many of these houses have been here for 100 years and people in them lived through World War II, the JFK assassination, the Vietnam War, as well as the signing of the Civil Rights Act, the Bicentennial and the collapse of the Berlin Wall.
Mt. Lebanon is an old suburb, one of the first built around the industrial center of Pittsburgh. Although its founding dates to 1912, its growth was mainly spurred by the access afforded by the opening of the Liberty tunnels in the mid-1920s. When America became a nation that traveled by automobile, Mt. Lebanon was right there to welcome the new commuters.
The municipality was touted by real estate developers as offering fresh air and cleanliness, away from the city. Remember this was when Pittsburghers were inhaling tons of smoke and soot from the steel mills operating 24/7 just a couple of miles away. A flood of new housing was built in the ’30s when prosperous families realized that their children could grow up in what must have seemed like the country.
Of course, Mt. Lebanon’s status as an outer ring suburb has been supplanted by ones farther out: Bethel Park, Upper St. Clair, Peter Township. Now we’re an inner ring suburb—able to offer quick access to downtown in a place that’s still very different from the city.
Some people see the municipality’s features as liabilities: small lots, old houses, a business district split by a major road, garages built for Model Ts, even some alleyways. Mt. Lebanon is not a place where you would look first if you wanted to build your own house; open land is scarce and expensive, and what’s left is mostly on the sides of steep hills.
I see most of those “problems” as assets. Small lots promote community. When your house is set close to your neighbors’, it’s almost impossible not to get to know them. I grew up here and as a child never felt that our yard was inadequate to play or explore in. My parents did a fair amount of entertaining in it, too, small as it was. Our neighbors were our friends, and we rarely locked the doors during the day. (Many Leboites still don’t.) Parents on our street knew all the kids up and down the block, and looked out for them.
If your house was built more than 50 years ago, it was probably very well constructed, with thick walls of brick or stone, a slate roof, plaster finishes, crown molding, maybe even a corner cupboard in the dining room. The houses are old, yes, but more than make up for it in charm. Travel our historic district and you’ll be bowled over by both the variety of architectural styles and their distinctive features: mullioned windows, arched front doors, even castle-like turrets. Many of these houses have been altered over the years with additions and updates, expansive family rooms and huge kitchens, so Lebo houses stand with the best of Pittsburgh real estate.
And of course, we have an actual town center, unlike many of the surrounding areas. A place where the library, the coffee shop, the ice cream parlor, the municipal building, and lots of restaurants are concentrated into a compact, walkable area with two big parking garages. No small thing.
Planned communities all over the country are trying to replicate this kind of town: walkable, charming, accessible, set up for community. Mt. Lebanon’s progenitors were way ahead of them.