{"id":588,"date":"2014-06-06T02:00:00","date_gmt":"2014-06-06T02:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/?p=588"},"modified":"2015-04-15T15:24:48","modified_gmt":"2015-04-15T19:24:48","slug":"cleaning-herron-hill-reservoir","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2014\/06\/06\/cleaning-herron-hill-reservoir\/","title":{"rendered":"Cleaning Herron Hill Reservoir"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Herron <\/a>
Herron Hill Reservoir was drained for repairs in May 1965. (Credit: The Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div>
\"Workers <\/a>
Workers performing repairs at Herron Hill Reservoir in May 1965. (Credit: The Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Workers <\/a>
Workers performing repairs at Herron Hill Reservoir in May 1965. (Credit: The Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Herron <\/a>
Herron Hill Reservoir was drained for repairs in May 1965. (Credit: The Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Standing <\/a>
Standing in roughly the same spot 49 years later, the water and other tower still comprise the view looking northeast. (Credit: Ethan Magoc\/Post-Gazette) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"The <\/a>
The Cathedral of Learning can be seen at various angles from the top of Herron Hill. (Credit: Ethan Magoc\/Post-Gazette) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"A <\/a>
A wide-angle look at Robert E. Williams Memorial Park and the Pittsburgh skyline in the distance. (Credit: Ethan Magoc\/Post-Gazette) <\/div> <\/div>
\"A <\/a>
A view of Downtown Pittsburgh and the Hill District looking west from the reservoir atop Herron Hill. (Credit: Ethan Magoc\/Post-Gazette) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

Most Pittsburghers would say Mount Washington offers the best view of their city.<\/p>\n

Maybe so, but as Post-Gazette columnist Brian O\u2019Neill wrote this week<\/a>, Observatory Hill\u2019s Brashear Reservoir is actually Pittsburgh\u2019s highest elevation point at 1,370 feet. He found the elevation ranking doesn\u2019t necessarily provide the best view of the skyline and surrounding area.<\/p>\n

Reader Mike Cornell responded to his column: \u201cBrian, you had the right idea but the wrong reservoir. Try the reservoir in Robert E. Williams (Herron Hill) Park.\u201d<\/p>\n

At The Digs, we made good on his suggestion and visited the park as the sun was setting.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s centered in the Upper Hill and offers equally impressive views to the north, south, east and west \u2014 an advantage over Mount Washington or the West End, where one\u2019s eye is drawn toward the Golden Triangle.<\/p>\n

The reservoir itself\u00a0was built in the 1880s and now holds 14 million gallons, serving neighborhoods that include Bloomfield, Garfield,\u00a0the Hill District,\u00a0Point Breeze,\u00a0Squirrel Hill and upper Oakland. In 2004, City Paper\u2019s Chris Potter labeled the 19th-century construction<\/a> \u201ca desperately needed improvement for a rapidly expanding city.\u201d<\/p>\n

From 1920 through 1964, the city did not clean the reservoir\u2019s bottom. Leaks developed and minor earth slides resulted, leading to a $150,000 repair job ($1.2 million in 2014).<\/p>\n

The photos above \u2014 taken in the spring of 1965 \u2014 reveal the reservoir as it\u2019s not often seen.<\/p>\n

That is especially so today, when a fence and tarp-like covering extends across the two-acre space.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s centered in the Upper Hill and offers equally impressive views to the north, south, east and west.<\/p>\n

Look at the picturesCleaning Herron Hill Reservoir<\/span><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":592,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[945],"tags":[975,979,1059,1051],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/tumblr_n6pshzqi461rr5swxo2_1280.jpg?fit=1280%2C761&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1237,"url":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2013\/11\/06\/the-last-republican-mayor-of-pittsburgh\/","url_meta":{"origin":588,"position":0},"title":"The last Republican mayor of Pittsburgh","date":"November 6, 2013","format":"gallery","excerpt":"The last time Pittsburgh had a Republican mayor was in 1933 and he served 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