Hi neighbor: Family moves into Mister Rogers' former Pittsburgh home
There are new neighbors in Mister Rogers’ neighborhood.
In fact, they are living in Mister Rogers’ former house.
A family recently purchased the Squirrel Hill home on Northumberland Street for $866,000. It was once the home of Pittsburgh’s beloved Fred Rogers from WQED’s “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” and his wife, Joanne.
“I am so happy for this young family,” said Todd Kilgore, of Piatt Sotheby’s International Realty, who represented the buyers. “My clients are such a wonderful people. There was a lot of love in that house from Fred and Joanne Rogers.”
The owners, who asked not to be identified, said the home has everything they wanted, from more room to a location that’s close to school and work.
Kilgore said the house definitely drew some attention once news got out it was on the market. When it was being inspected, he said he saw several people drive by to take photos.
The five-bedroom home is nearly 4,000 square feet. It has a renovated kitchen and three-and-a-half bathrooms.
Kilgore wanted to give the new owners a gift. He asked his wife, Jennifer, a board member of the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh, to contact The Fred Rogers Center in Latrobe. Staff members there gave her a card with a photo of the Rogers’ house, which he had framed. The picture now hangs in the library.
Todd Kilgore said he once met Joanne Rogers at a function at the Children’s Museum.
“She was such a wonderful person,” he said. “You could just tell she was such a caring soul. Joanne and Fred Rogers were so special to Pittsburgh. I am proud to be a little part of the sale of their beloved home.”
The Rogers lived there until the early 1960s. The home was built in the 1920s.
The current owners didn’t realize it was the Rogers’ home until toward the end of the sale. When they first moved to Pittsburgh, they saw something about Fred Rogers on PBS.
They had been looking for a bigger home for two years, more aggressively in the past six months.
They especially liked the yellow front door — the color is a favorite of one of their children. They said neighbors on either side stopped by to welcome them.
According to the Allegheny Real Estate Portal, former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner once owned the home.
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive reporter covering the region's diverse culinary scene and unique homes. She writes features about interesting people. The Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist began her career as a sports reporter. She has been with the Trib for 26 years and is the author of "A Daughter's Promise." She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.