Sentence:  Square corner - and gate posts were an open-work pattern of cast-iron foliage ; they were topped by <WSD>steeples</WSD> complete in every detail : high pitched roof , pinnacle , and narrow gable . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  a tall tower that forms the superstructure of a building (usually a church or temple) and that tapers to a point at the top