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History's Time Portal to Old St. Louis,
"A Site to Behold"
--St. Louis Post Dispatch, Jan. 1, 2006
Welcome to 2012! Now with well over 600,000 visitors! This is a mere survey of some of the amazing history and heritage that exist for St. Louis City and County. The website was mainly put together from 1999 to 2006 from material in my personal collection, contributions from private collectors and from sources in the public domain. Many thanks to the contributors of articles and photographs. Since that time I have stopped adding new material to the site. From time to time I will make updates, such as correcting or adding links. In the meantime, I will be out walking more, touring historical sites, collecting antique postcards, and spending family time. Website work takes considerable time, so now I am semi-retiring to sit back and enjoy the efforts of others.
This web-space for this not-for-profit site is provided free for by USGenNet. This site has been designated a Legacy Site, meaning it will be continued to be published even after I pass into history. That is conditional upon support received from donations. That's the best time-protection of any site on the web. If you appreciate this site, please consider making a tax deductible contribution to USGenNet that supports websites like this.
--Scott K. Williams,
San Ferdinando de Florissant, (Florissant), St. Louis County, Missouri.
Highschool class of 1980, McClurer
Email: showmemule"at"earthlink.net (spam control: replace "at" with @)
For those that arrived to this site trapped in the frames of another site, the web address for this page is: http://www.usgennet.org/usa/mo/county/stlouis/
NOW FOR WHAT MOST OF YOU CAME FOR:
ST LOUIS HISTORY
"Kenwood Springs", St. Louis County, Mo. This postcard is circa 1910. In 1910 Federal Census, Ernest M. Leonard is recorded as living on Natural Bridge Road (no street number). By the 1920 census the family is living at 3710 Salome Ave. (which is a side street directly off Natural Bridge Road), in present day City of Pine Lawn). In a May 3, 1908 (part 3, page9) advertisement in the St. Louis Republic newspaper, the Kenwood Springs Realty Company (owned by Herman C. G. Luyties) describes Kenwood Springs as "The Garden Spot of St. Louis County", located on Natural Bridge Road, and that over 100 families are living there. "Only desirable people, those of families, are wanted at Kenwood. Those who will own their own house and live in it. No speculators can get hold of Kenwood property." "Kenwood Springs is accessible to the city. All improvements are made--Sewerage, sidewalks, graded streets, county water supply, electric light, telephone service, gas, curbs, fine flowers, trees, natural drainage, restricted property..." Various models of homes were available including the very popular "bungalow". The add states one can secure a house for "$50 down and the balance on easy monthly installments." 1908 directions to Kenwood Springs: "Take any car to Wellston or Suburban Garden. Change to car marked 'Ferguson.'. Three minutes ride from Suburban Garden. Just outside the city limits." Thanks to Dennis Northcott, researcher at the Missouri Historical Society for finding this advertisement.
More about the resident: Ernest M. Leonard (b. circa 1871 Maine) and his wife, Jessie N. (b. circa 1871 Mass.) lived with son, Stuart M. (b. 1906 Missouri). In the 1910 Federal census (Central Township-St. Louis County) Leonard is listed as a shoemaker and by 1920 he is listed as a superintendent of a shoe factory. By 1930, the Leonard family had moved off to the Mobile area of Alabama and were operating a truck farm.
The Frisco Hotel and
Restaurant ("Open Day and Night") and train station at Valley Park, in western
St. Louis County. This is how it appeared in a 1910 postcard, image contributed
by James B. Whitlow.
[full size
image]
"A People without history
Is Not redeemed from time,
for history is a pattern
Of timeless moments."
--T. S. Eliot, Four Quartets, 1942. (world famed poet, St. Louis resident)
Note: This search tool will only find words that are in
text/html files. Text in image files (like those in the World War I
rosters) can not be searched using this tool. Also newly uploaded information
usually takes a couple weeks before the site is re-indexed for the search
tool.
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The circus comes to St. Louis, circa 1914-1917. Elephants passing in front of the Johansen Brothers Shoe Co. This photo is just one of many subjects of the outstanding Thomas Kempland Collection.
Images of Old St. Louis The amazing Thomas Kempland glassplate photo Collection; Snapshots of street scenes and tragedy; Images from Private collections. Most of these images are not free to be used, unless noted.
Triangular Arrow Point, (actual height is 1 1/8 inches) was in use among the aboriginal Americans of the Late Woodland through the Mississippian tradition (900 to 1600 A.D.) Although common, they are often difficult to find due to their small size. This one was found by the author in March of 2008 in Florissant.
Aboriginal Americans ("American Indians") Note: New theory that Paleo-Indians immigrated from western Europe.
Census Demographics (1772-2000)
Desloge "Vouziers" Mansion, near Shackleford and New Halls Ferry, Florissant.
Tebelmann Baking Company, circa 1925 Blair Avenue & O'Fallon Street, St. Louis.
Jefferson Barracks (oldest active military base West of the Mississippi) Circa 1920-1930 Aerial photos.
Frederick Hyatt Mansion, Shackleford Rd., Florissant.
B.H. Stoltman Real Estate Co., 4003/4005 Chouteau Ave. 1918
Soulard Fruit and Produce Co., 1700 S. Ninth St.
Forgotten Places of St. Louis and St. Louis County. (Updated July 2005)
Camp Jackson ("Lindell's Grove") Civil War Camp, Now Frost Campus of St. Louis University.
Camp Gaillard, Chain of Rocks area, St. Louis World War I Encampment (12th Engineers)
Benton Barracks ("Camp Benton") Perhaps the most important forgotten historical site in St. Louis. It was the largest permanent Civil War encampment west of the Mississippi. It had a much greater role regarding troop deployments than even Jefferson Barracks during the War Between the States. Almost every Union soldier serving in the West, wrote a letter or had his last portrait taken here before going to combat.
Casa Alvarez (Last building with a colonial Spanish connection) Florissant, Mo.
Bridgeton Memorial Park Cemetery and Monument. (with names of pioneers once buried here) [Removed by Airport Expansion]
Endangered or Destroyed Buildings of the City or County. It is happening so fast I can't keep up with it. Here are some that I managed to photograph before being disturbed.
"Cold Water Cemetery, Oldest Protestant Cemetery West of the Mississippi". Burial location of two Revolutionary War soldiers! Location: Florissant, Missouri
Old St. Ferdinand Shrine of Florissant, founded 1819-1820, Oldest Catholic Church between the Mississippi and the Rocky Mountains.
"Cold Water Cemetery, Oldest Protestant Cemetery West of the Mississippi". Burial location of two Revolutionary War soldiers! Location: Florissant, Missouri
Airports, Airfields, and Balloon Ascension Grounds of St. Louis City/County.
James O. Williams Farm, Hudson Rd., Ferguson
Past Featured Photos (w/ buildings, landmarks)
Cpl. Robert G. Winston, Corregidor Survivor,World War II POW/Slave Laborer, Bronze Star Recipient, Hazelwood Resident.
Lambert's Forgotten Aviator, Howard William Bode, U.S. Army Aircorps WW2
Creely / Creeley Family Roots Discovered (Takes the family back to founding families of colonial St. Louis and St. Ferdinand)
St. Louis Firefighters Killed in Line of Duty. w/ music and lyrics to the 1877 historical ballad about Phelim O'Toole, Hero of Southern Hotel Fire.
Minnette Slayback Carper's Journal. HOT!: Detailed Everyday Life of a Girl Growing Up in Late Nineteenth Century St. Louis. (Daughter of Col. A. Slayback)
Col. Alonzo Slayback, A Story About One Founder of St. Louis Veiled Prophet Parade, Murdered by an Editor of the St. Louis Post Dispatch ! Read about the his famous Colonel of the Civil War and the battles he fought. [Without background Music]
True Stories of Life As a Doughboy in World War I, by Lt. James E. Darst, 341st Machine Gun Battalion (Ferguson, Mo.)
Missouri World War I Veteran Photos and Biographies (most from St. Louis)
Thomas Lanier "Tennessee" Williams [See also early Williams Family Genealogy Welsh/Colonial/Early American]
The Yeckel Collection. these pictures are from the Brueckner, Nolte, Schaller, Spraul, Yeckel families who emigrated to St. Louis from Germany between the 1860 to 1891. They settled in the neighborhoods around Soulard Market and Anheuser-Busch Brewery. Contributed by Joan Schaller Yeckel.
"He Died in Public Sin: The Life and Death of Sen Peter R. Morrissey", by James M. Gallen.
Pioneer Aviators of St. Louis. Besides Lindbergh, there were many other pioneers but less known.
Jean Francois St. Cosme, held the first Catholic mass in St. Louis, by James M. Gallen
Father John B. Bannon: Chaplain, Soldier, and Diplomat, by James M. Gallen
Making Treaties: Good Faith or Deception: "...What do we know of the laws and customs of the White people ? They might buy our bodies for dissection, and we would touch the goose quill to confirm it, without knowing what we are doing."----Ma-Ka-Tai-Me-She-Kia-Kiak
William Clark and the Black Hawk War. "...No Indian in history had ever gone on the warpath taking, women, children, and old people, with them.", yet Clark, the celebrated friend of the Indian and leader of the Corps of Discovery ordered their "extermination".
Slavery in St. Louis, "Though slavery is thought, by some, to be mild in Missouri, when compared with the cotton, sugar and rice growing states, yet no part of our slave-holding country is more noted for the barbarity of its inhabitants than St. Louis."--William Wells Brown
U.S. Colored Troops and the Plight of Refugee Slaves. St. Louis and the Civil War.
A Nineteenth Century Murder Mystery in St. Louis. The Tonkin Murder Case as Covered by St. Louis Newspapers. Transcribed by Karen King.
Deadly Epidemics in St. Louis History. (w/ 1866 Cholera Map)
"The St.
Louis Cyclone of 1896" Account of the worst storm in the city's
history.
Hear the "Grand Descriptive
Song" that brought relief from across the Nation. See historic photographs taken
of the tragedy.
1927 Tornado Disaster, rare photographs of the massive destruction that hit south central St. Louis. Including images of victims, boy scouts, soldiers, rescue operations.
More Damage Photos from the 1896 St. Louis Cyclone (7 pages of images, with the last page featuring East St. Louis).
Phelim O'Toole, of the St. Louis Fire Department and hero of the Southern Hotel Fire. Music and lyrics to this 1877 historical ballad.
The Ironclads and Monitors from Carondelet and St. Louis. (Civil War)
Hospital Steamers of the Western Sanitary Commission (Civil War)
A Tribute to St. Louisans killed in Vietnam. A listing of names by community, and photos of monuments in St. Louis City/County for those that sacrificed their lives in this conflict.
Summary History of the 131st Fighter Wing, Missouri Air National Guard, Lambert Field, St. Louis. [Updated Nov 2003]
"The Navy At Lambert Field (1925-1958)" By George Everding, LCDR USN (1920-2006)
History of St. Louis Air National Guard Illustrated In Depth History, by Wilbur Tackaberry, CMS USAF Ret.
A Tribute to St. Louisans Killed in Korean War A listing of names by community in St. Louis City/County for those that sacrificed their lives in this conflict, primarily between 1950-1954
World War II (limited, aviation only)
Jefferson Barracks (oldest active military base West of the Mississippi) Circa 1920-1930 Aerial photos.
Missouri in the Spanish American War. Features pictures and roster of the St. Louis unit, Missouri Volunteers, Battery A.
U.S. Colored Troops and the Plight of Refugee Slaves. St. Louis and the Civil War.
Benton Barracks (Camp Benton) Largest Permanent Civil War Encampment west of the Mississippi.
The Ironclads and Monitors from Carondelet and St. Louis. (Civil War)
Hospital Steamers of the Western Sanitary Commission (Civil War)
"Merrill's Horse" (2nd Mo Cavalry, US--Civil War)
Indian Wars (early conflicts with native tribes, including Blackhawk War)
War of 1812-1815 (Operations out of Ft. Belle Fontaine.)
Colonial Warfare The revolutionary war battle fought in St. Louis
U.S. Colored Troops and the Plight of Refugee Slaves. St. Louis and the Civil War. With the fast tune, "Kingdom Coming".
Phelim O'Toole, of the St. Louis Fire Department and hero of the Southern Hotel Fire. Music and lyrics to this 1877 historical ballad.
Col. Alonzo Slayback, A Story About One Founder of St. Louis Veiled Prophet Parade, Murdered by an Editor of the St. Louis Post Dispatch ! Read about the his famous Colonel of the Civil War and the battles he fought. Tune: "Red River Valley"
"St. Louis' Ships of Iron" The Ironclads and Monitors from Carondelet and St. Louis. Plus Music and lyrics of the Civil War Naval ballad."Oh Give Us a Navy of Iron !"
"Ridin' in the Street Cars" Music and lyrics about the early horse drawn street cars of 1870 St. Louis. Also brief history of street cars in St. Louis.
"Ragtime Music of St. Louis" Featuring Photo of Scott Joplin's St. Louis home and music of Joplin's "Maple Leaf Rag", "The Entertainer" and Thomas Turpin's "St. Louis Rag".
"The Invasion of Camp Jackson", by Joseph Leddy--A Pro-Confederate Civil War Song of St. Louis.
"Hospital Steamers of the Western Sanitary Commission" Featuring 1864 music,"City of Alton Schottisch".
"Antebellum Militias in St. Louis" Listen to the St. Louis Greys' Quickstep Or the "St. Louis National Guard March".
"Steamboating on the Mississippi" St. Louis' Riverboat Heritage. The great steamboat race between the Natchez and Robert E. Lee that ended in St. Louis. Also listen to the 1910 song, "Steamboat Bill".
"The Ballad of Merrill's Horse" (2nd Mo Cavalry, US)
Benton Barracks (Camp Benton) "Benton Barracks Parade March".
Brewing Beer in St. Louis. music, "Under the Anheuser Bush" and a St. Louis prohibitionist song, "Good-Bye John Barleycorn".
"The
St. Louis Cyclone of 1896" Account of the worst storm in the city's
history.
Hear the "Grand Descriptive
Song" that brought relief from across the Nation. See historic photographs taken
of the tragedy.
History of Ft. Belle Fontaine (Cantonment Belle Fontaine) Military outpost and trading post on the American Frontier. Located in northern St. Louis County. With the American military ballad, "St. Clair's Defeat" that was popular in the early 1800's.
The Doughboy Cafe: Music of World War I (Over thirty tunes American, British, and French)
Boyhood Home of Thomas Lanier "Tennessee" Williams, 4633
Westminster Place, St. Louis, Mo.
Williams Family History
Parade in the 1970's featuring "Banjo", the mascot of the 110th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Missouri Air National Guard headquartered at Lambert Field. Photo from the collection of Wilbur Tackaberry, CMS USAF Ret. [Enlarged Image] For more see, "History of St. Louis Aviation," by Wilbur Tackaberry, CMS USAF (Ret)
NEW: Read Everding's illustrated history, "The Navy At Lambert Field (1925-1958)"
I would also like to express kudos to local newspapers, the St. Louis Post Dispatch and the Suburban Journals for their many excellent articles on local history and preservation.
This page is dedicated to those innocents that were murdered by terrorists on 11 Sept 2001 and to all the men/women of St. Louis City/County that died in military service for their country, from colonial times to the present.
For a complete listing of all St. Louis City/County military personnel that sacrificed their lives during the Vietnam conflict, see St. Louis Vietnam Tribute Page and Korean War, A Tribute to St. Louisans Killed in Korean War
Jeff (St. Louis): "Wow!! Wow!! What a site. I wish I could have found this earlier. You should be proud. St. Louis deserves the best and you have provided it."
Matt a soldier at Travis AFB, California writes, "I am originally a native of St. Louis. Now in the military for the past few years I tend to miss home. It is great to learn as much as I have on your website. I kind of find it a shame that I have learned more about St. Louis in the past 8 hours than I had my whole 19 years there. Thank You"
Erin, St. Ann, Mo.: "This is a great web page and so very helpful I am a student at washington university and I am doing my final paper on the Veiled Prophet and I found a lot of good info THANK YOU SO MUCH."
Vicki, Festus, Mo.: "Your site is outstanding!! I have been researching my family history and your site helped me to better picture the places where my ancestors had lived. I come from the Kettler and Hagemann lines of St. Louis. You have been a big help!"
Florence, Sun City West, AZ: "Born and reared in St. Louis. Love visting your site - nostalgic and very interesting! Everyone with ties to St. Louis area should be apprecative of your efforts - we are!"
Joseph (Washington DC) "Marvelous site! Brought a lump to this old Missouri (ex-Jefferson City; wife, ex-St. Louis) boy's throat. Beeen away 30 years, but have great memories. Expect to view you often.
Jake (Atlanta, GA): "I just moved from St. Louis to Atlanta and am thrilled to find this site. I spent 26 years there and it is still my "home." I hate the Braves and "Bleed Blue." I hope to search more of it soon when I have time. I especially like the songs! I love music. Go Blues and God Bless!"
Debbie, a teacher in Crestwood (Mo) writes, "I love your site. The organization is excellent. This is going to be a valuable resource for me and my students. Thank you!"
Andrea of Gerald, Mo (Franklin Co.) .: "My heart started racing when I started reading some of the stuff in here! My mother was also a Williams with lots of St. Louis history before her.... I have to add this, especially after I heard the "maple Leaf Rag", did it ever bring back memories. We had an old player piano back in the sixties, that an elderly neighbor of ours had given to us. Well, we had several rolls of music by Scott Joplin. There was nine of us fighting over that old piano, man did we have fun! Can you believe my mother sold it to someone ,we were so mad at her! I sure wish I had it right now to play for my granddaughter I did let her listen to this website's music, though, how wonderful Thanks!"
Penny: "Very impressive and interesting. St. Louis is a wonderful city and I enjoy it more every time I visit. My husband was born and raised there, so he still has two sisters living in the area. You've done a marvelous job. I commend you on your accomplishment."
S. P. of Oakville, Missouri. "MSN's search engine is sooooo awful. I was looking for St. Louis body art sites, typed in Iron Age, and ended up HERE! Good thing I did. Most informative; thanks for a wonderful site. I've bookmarked it for my school-age children. P.S. Especially enjoyed the old pics of Jefferson Barracks, as we live not far from there."
Virginia (Cleveland, OH): "What a splendid website! I was born in St. Louis in 1925 and have been looking into some family history and especially have been scanning old photographs. The riches you are assembling here give some background. *Maybe* we (a cousin who is similarly involved) can contribute some interesting material about early aviation days in St. Louis. Thanks for your thoughtful work on developing and sharing this information."
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You are the 634022nd Visitor to this Site. This page was last updated Thursday, 23-Aug-2012 18:23:06 CDT by Scott K. Williams, Florissant, Mo.
Website created by Scott K. Williams, Florissant, Missouri. USA
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