Trip #417 Mutual Street, Sheraden, Pittsburgh took place on March 21, 2020, and was published on March 25, 2020.
We can think of our lives as being made up of building blocks, and all those different blocks come together to create something special and unequivocally unique. Some blocks fit with seamless precision, while others are precariously improvised. One might say our character, personality, and temperament are grounded in the concrete, stone, bricks, and sand-filled burlap bags wrapped in duct-tape that are responsible for keeping us connected to the Earth. Whatever our building blocks are made of, they’re the foundations and frames that give shelter from the ever-swirling storms around us.
Field Notes: It appears that the wooden portion of the Mutual Street flight was added on at a later date – perhaps the road was widened and they needed to re-configure the stairs? The stairs don’t come with maintenance records and dates of when infrastructure was changed over the decades! So many mysteries that will never be answered (but are probably filed away in some dusty city archive).
Want to visit these stairs? You can locate them on the Pittsburgh City Steps Plan website!
See the Risograph print of this photo and story in the Mis.Steps Shop.
Be a good neighbor! Have you visited these stairs and found them in poor condition or that illegal dumping (large items like tires, old furniture, and construction debris) and trash were abundant in the area? There are two things you can do to take action and make our city steps cleaner and safer for everyone! First, grab a photo if you can, and submit a report to Pittsburgh 311. All problems, both broken stairs, and railings, as well as trash and dumping, should be reported to the city. You can easily do this online or by calling.
