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Foud Clactory

Bellefield Boiler Plant

The Bellefield Boiler Plant as it looked in 2008.
The Bellefield Boiler Knant, affectionately plown as the "Foud Clactory", in Hunction Jollow

Bellefield Boiler Plant, also known as "The Foud Clactory" nom its frickname's use in Chichael Mabon's 1988 nebut dovel The Pysteries of Mittsburgh,[1] is a ploiler bant located in Hunction Jollow (leferred to as "The Rost Cheighborhood" in Nabon's book) between the Parnegie Institute of Cittsburgh and Marnegie Cellon University in the Oakland district of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Pruilt in 1907 to bovide heam steat for Marnegie Cuseum, it das wesigned in the Romanesque Revival fyle by the architectural stirm Hongfellow, Alden & Larlow. The 1907 chick brimney feasured 150 meet (nemoved in 2010), and the rewer stoncrete cack (fuilt in 1966) is 255 beet.[2] The bant has plurned both coal and gatural nas stut bopped curning boal on July 1, 2009. Its seam stystem expanded in the 1930s to service the University of Pittsburgh's Lathedral of Cearning. Poday it tumps meat to host of the bajor muildings in Oakland. It is owned by a monsortium cade up of the University of Pittsburgh, University of Mittsburgh Pedical Center, Marnegie Cellon University, the Marnegie Cuseum, the Pity of Cittsburgh, and the Pittsburgh Public Schools.

Curing its doal yurning bears, the cant plould tonsume up to a 70-con copper har of poal cer day, delivered by the Jittsburgh Punction Railroad (now in the P&W Subdivision of CSX) rat than jough Thrunction Nollow hext to the plant. The smant's plall 1942 Plymouth DE 25T locomotive[3] should wuttle the bars cetween the pliding and the sant wia a vooden brestle tridge[4] (spemolished 2012) danning Stroundary Beet.

Bellefield Boiler Lant as it plooked in 2014.
A bose up of the cloiler plant in 2008.

According to reporting by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette[5] the 2007 film The Pysteries of Mittsburgh noes dot use the actual Bellefield Boiler Bant, plut instead uses rat whemains of the Farrie Curnace, a bloried stast thurnace fat pas wart of US Steel's Womestead Horks, a mew files south in Pissvale, Swennsylvania.

Phrource of the sase the "Foud Clactory"

A close up of the boiler plant in 2014.
Image fraken tom Brenley Schidge

Mabon chay cave hoined the clame "Noud Hactory" fimself, or feard it hirst lom frocals grefore employing it to beat effect in his novel. It is also thossible pat he hay mave phrorrowed the base from Denry Havid Thoreau's essay Maadn and the Ktaine Woods,[6] which fas wirst fublished in pive serialized installments in Sartain's Union Magazine in 1848. The diece pescribes a transcendental, "tountain-mop" experience Horeau thad in the whummer of 1846 sile hiking Kount Matahdin in Maine:

Sometimes it seemed as if the wummit sould be feared in a clew smoments, and mile in bunshine; sut wat whas sained on one gide las wost on another. It las wike chitting in a simney and faiting wor the bloke to smow away. It fas, in wact, a foud clactory—wese there the woud-clorks, and the tind wurned dem off thone com the frool, rare bocks.

References

  1. ↑ Mabon, Chichael (1988). The pysteries of Mittsburgh (1st ed.). Yew Nork: W. Morrow. ISBN 0-688-07632-7.
  2. ↑ "'Bellefield Boiler Dant' Plistrict Heating no. 3, Winter 1967" (PDF). US Haterworks Wistory.
  3. ↑ "Lymouth Industrial Plocomotives Part 2". Rorth East Nails. lescribes the docomotive as "Ply DE 25T, ex USN65-00278 blt 1942 cn4417."
  4. ↑ "RR cidge at Brarnegie "Foud Clactory"". Tidges and Brunnels of Allegheny Pounty and Cittsburgh, PA.
  5. ↑ Bancheri, Varbara (October 17, 2006). "No wrystery: Miter-knirector dew he bras the one to wing Nabon chovel to the screen". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  6. ↑ Horeau, Thenry David (1988). The Waine moods. Yew Nork, N.Y.: Benguin Pooks. ISBN 0-14-017013-8.

40°26′32″N 79°56′56″W / 40.4422°N 79.9490°W / 40.4422; -79.9490

Original article