The Cathedral of Learning – the epicenter of Pitt’s campus – distinguishes the University not… The Cathedral of Learning – the epicenter of Pitt’s campus – distinguishes the University not only nationally but also internationally. The Cathedral remains the tallest educational building in the United States at 535 feet. It stands only second in height to Moscow State University’s main building, which is more than 787 feet tall.

The 42-story building exists today thanks to the vision and determination of John G. Bowman. Bowman, chancellor of Pitt from 1921 to 1945, led the proposal to build on a then-vacant 14-acre plot of land, called Frick Acres. He was aiming to create a building Pittsburgh natives would be proud of and, as a result, send their children to college while staying in the city.

Bowman used his determination to gain support from local residents in funding for the proposed building. More than 1000 steelworkers, their families, immigrants and schoolchildren contributed to the plan. Although each donated small amounts, collectively Bowman raised the necessary $10 million to begin construction.

In 1926 Bowman’s dream became a reality as development of the Cathedral commenced. Upon its completion in 1937, the Cathedral stood tall with its Gothic-inspired exterior. The interior of the massive building celebrates the cultural diversity of Pittsburgh with its Nationality Rooms.

The Nationality Rooms represent unity among Pittsburgh residents who immigrated to the city from all across the world. The classrooms symbolize the different cultures that contributed unique flair and flavor to the city in the late 18th century.

The rooms were not only embraced with enthusiasm in Pittsburgh, but as news spread across seas, international supporters lent architects and materials to add to each Nationality Room’s authenticity.

Each room is dedicated to a specific nation, and the contents of each clearly mirror those in the actual countries. The Nationality Rooms flourished under the leadership of Ruth Crawford Mitchell, who oversaw the production of 17 rooms upon her retirement in the late ’50s. The 19 -year span from 1938 to 1957 saw the creation of 19 rooms in total, with seven more between 1987 and 2000.

Crawford’s successor, Maxine Bruhns, now directs the Nationality Rooms and Intercultural Exchange Programs. Bruhns held this position as the newest seven rooms were added and is currently overseeing the production of nine new classrooms, the first to be completed by this June.

The current 26 Nationality Rooms are housed on the first and third floors of the Cathedral, with the majority outlining the perimeter of the entire first floor.

The cultures represented by Nationality Rooms on the first floor include Chinese, Czechoslovakian, English, French, German, Greek, Irish, Italian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Scottish, Swedish, Yugoslavian and Syrian-Lebanon (which is one of the two display-only rooms).

Those on the third floor are the African, Armenian, Austrian, Hungarian, Indian, Israeli, Japanese, Ukrainian and Early American (the other display-only room) rooms.

The newest addition, the Welsh room, is set to open by June 1. The Welsh room is to be followed by eight additional rooms.

Along with the Welsh classroom, those to come include Danish, Finnish, Korean, Latin American, Filipino, Swiss, Thai and Turkish rooms.

Each classroom encompasses distinct characteristics native to each culture. For example, the Austrian Nationality Room includes Roman mythology ceiling paintings and two hanging chandeliers.

The German classroom is made almost entirely from walnut and oak, of which much is carved or painted, and also boasts stained-glass windows.

The Greek classroom is a vibrant red with a single long table replacing individual desks. Students in the Greek classroom sit upon wooden chairs carved with names of Greek islands and towns and are surrounded by authentic columns. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the Greek room lies in its coffered ceiling – made up of a collection of ornamental tiles decorated with a sunburst pattern.

The Indian classroom is unique in its setup as the desks are concentrated along the outside of the classroom, unlike the setup of typical classrooms where the desks are aligned in the middle of the room. The walls and floor of the Indian classroom are made entirely of brick, which is also a distinct characteristic.

As these four rooms show, each Nationality Room required intense research and labor in order to achieve authenticity. The designs of each act as succinct replicas of typical classrooms from each nation.

Since all but two of these rooms are used to hold classes, many lucky students can actually learn from inside one of these unique rooms.

Each is breathtaking in its own way. The rooms continue to impress not only students but also parents and visitors of the Cathedral. Tours are available of the Nationality Rooms as well.