Friends of the Zeiss
Telephone:
412-561-7876
Electronic
Mail: < friendsofthezeiss@planetarium.cc
>
Internet
Web Site: < http://www.friendsofthezeiss.org
>
2005
February 22
Paul S.
Korol
Dear Mr.
Korol:
Last
month, Jen Kissel of the Pittsburgh Senior News gave me permission, I
understand with your authorization, to reprint
your history article regarding the Boggs and Buhl Department Store on my
Internet web site --
History of
The Buhl Planetarium and Institute of Popular Science,
Thank you
so much for permission to reprint this article. It is one of the best history
articles I have seen on the store that provided the wealth for Henry Buhl, Jr.,
eventually leading to the construction of Buhl Planetarium.
Enclosed
is a copy of the web page, containing your history article.
< http://buhlplanetarium2.tripod.com/bio/boggsbuhl.htm
>
You will
note that I added a short addendum, completely separate from your article and
following your article, regarding the closing of Boggs and Buhl. You can learn
more about the history of Buhl Planetarium at the Internet web page listed in
the second paragraph.
I was
employed with Buhl Planetarium from 1982-1991, and I wore many hats during that
tenure, including Astronomical Observatory Coordinator, Planetarium Lecturer,
and Curator of a rather unique exhibit, the BioCorner, where we hatched chicks
each weekend!
I am now
Project Director of a small non-profit organization, called Friends of the
Zeiss. We are concerned about the future of the historic equipment and
artifacts from Buhl Planetarium, most of which are now in storage. We believe
this is a waste of such valuable artifacts and continue to lobby for the
artifacts return to Buhl Planetarium.
Particularly
for two important pieces of equipment, the Zeiss II Planetarium Projector and
the 10-inch Siderostat-type Refractor Telescope, they can be used nowhere else,
as the Buhl Planetarium building was custom-built for these two instruments.
Prior to its dismantling in October of 2002, the Zeiss Projector was the oldest operable major planetarium projector
in the world !
At the
present time, Friends of the Zeiss has nominated the Buhl Planetarium building for
designation as a historic landmark. Although there was a preliminary public
hearing on this nomination this month, the main public hearing before the
Historic Review Commission of Pittsburgh will be on Wednesday, March 2, 2005 at
3:25 p.m. in the first floor hearing room of the John P. Robin Civic Building,
200 Ross Street [corner of Ross Street and Second Avenue] in Downtown
Pittsburgh. This building is on the edge of
Paul S.
Korol 2005
February 22 Page
2 of 2
With your
interest in history, perhaps you would be interested in testifying in favor of
this nomination at this public hearing? You would not have to say much. You
would simply state your reasons for supporting the designation of Buhl Planetarium
as a historic landmark
If you would be interested in testifying, I
would be happy to talk to you about the public hearing process. You could
telephone me at 412-561-7876. I am also enclosing a copy of the statement I
delivered at the preliminary hearing this month, to give you an idea of the
rich history of Buhl Planetarium.
Again,
thank you so much for allowing us to archive your article on the Internet, so
people can learn more about Henry Buhl, Jr. and the Boggs and Buhl Department
Store.
Sincerely
yours,
Glenn A.
Walsh
Project
Director
gaw
Enclosures
2