Phipps Run & the Service Star Legion Memorials

Panther Hollow Lake is the collection point for Panther Hollow Run, of course, the stream that's fed from the backside of the Oval and Great Meadow areas. But contributing mightily to the cause is Phipps Run, which is formed from the slopes of the Phipps Conservatory - Flagstaff Hill area, then stretching around CMU and the Golf Course. The pair merge under the stone bridge that overlooks Lake Schenley and then splash into its waters.

Phipps Run cascading down a ravine.

One of Phipp's arms is fed by the Westinghouse Memorial Lily Pond, although its flow has been piped underground. If you follow Flagstaff to the Memorial, there are a pair of stone steps between Schenley and Circuit Drives just below GW that lead you to a Phipps headwater. It's a cool place to do a little exploring in the summer, although it's not part of a path and requires some trampling about with a jeans and boots combo to get around comfortably.

That little area is home to an array of memorials - Westinghouse, the Flag stone, plus the Service Star Legion and World War One Groves. Everyone knows about the popular Lily Pond and Westinghouse Memorial, and the eagle eyed are aware of the Flag Memorial at the same site. But the Service Star/WW1 groves are largely out of sight and out of mind.

After stopping to say hi to George and American Youth, visit the Flag Memorial and take a short stroll up Circuit Drive, across from the Westinghouse Picnic Shelter. There, you'll spot a grove with a solitary monument, dedicated in 1920 by the Legion, a patriotic women's group that was formed during the First World War.

Service Star Memorial Grove

The stone and bronze memorial was created by an unknown artist and dedicated to the WW1 servicemen in 1920. It has a pine tree beside it with a flowering bush at its front, and is a contemplative spot set in the middle of a gently sloped meadow. (Although for a period it burst with color - the ladies planted a pair of gold stars in the grove in 1921, consisting of 1,600 tulips.)

If you walk just past the grove to the small strand of oaks beside it, you’ll find a collection of ground plaques memorializing old vets known as the World War One Memorial; back in the thirties, it was a thing to plant a tree and erect a small marker. Dedicated in 1931 by the Ladies Auxiliary of the Ascalon Commandery #59 of the Knights Templar (the formal name for the group's Allegheny County chapter), it's one of the park's hidden marvels.
Some of the stones are dedicated to those who returned; others to those who didn't. At last visit, the markers were peeking up from under leaves and snow; the Service Star Legion has long since faded, assimilated into VFW and American Legion auxiliaries, and no one is left to care for the plot.
Still, time has been kind to the memorials even if man hasn't been. The stones and their brass plates are in pretty good shape considering they've been out in the Pittsburgh elements for the past 85 years.

Next time you're in that end of the park, spend a couple of restful minutes among the secluded and all but forgotten monuments; the Park is full of surprises, both natural and man-made.
(Note - the FOPHL are in the process of putting together a 2015 "to-do" list. Freshening up this grove may be one of the projects we tackle. If you have some ideas, visit us at https://www.facebook.com/pantherhollowlake and give us your thoughts.)

- Photo credits: Ron Ieraci -