Demolition has proceeded on the lower of the two cylindrical towers of the former Stouffer’s Riverfront Inn, or whatever name you best know it as, in downtown St. Louis. Demolition began with the low-slung wing that connected the two towers, and some preliminary demolition has begun on the lower floors of the original tower.
Category: Downtown
Posts about downtown St. Louis
The First SLU Medical School
Saint Louis University’s medical college moved from its main campus at Washington and 9th, which had been founded in 1836, to a new location at Myrtle (present-day Clark) and 7th. In 1854-55, SLU and the medical college separated, and the latter became the St. Louis Medical College. What is interesting are these two prints, above…
Saint Louis University, Downtown
I think many people might know that Saint Louis University was once located downtown, but may not realize that the buildings were an elegant ensemble of Neo-Classical edifices. Originally beginning as the St. Louis Academy in 1818, it was then the St. Louis College in 1829 now under the Jesuit umbrella, and finally University in…
Some Unique Vanished Churches
I think one of the more interesting aspects of the built environment in St. Louis is the number of churches we have lost not due to neglect and disinvestment but rather due to rapid growth. I thought it would be interesting to take a look at some of the earliest churches in St. Louis that…
End of Autumn 2025 Odds and Ends
Here are some leftover photos from the last six months. Above is a Falstaff sign in Benton Park. Above, looking down a street in what I think is Kingsway East towards the Chase Park Plaza, but I can’t be sure. Above is the Missouri Athletic Club, which I snapped while sitting at the light at…
Some Early Historic Maps
I had a bunch of maps saved up that I had some purpose for that I forgot, so I thought I would present them here for your enjoyment. The first two are related to Mill Creek and Chouteau’s Pond, and demonstrate how important the body of water was to early St. Louis. Remember, all images…
Demolition Commences, Former Stouffer’s Riverfront Hotel
Apparently it was a big deal when the Stouffer’s Riverfront Hotel opened downtown. Personally, I see it as a symptom of a larger problem: the belief that turning St. Louis into a giant showpiece of Modernist superblocks would save the city. I think we can all agree it failed miserably. One thing that always sticks…
Former Federal Building, 1520 Market Street
The former Federal Building, which is all that it was called when it first opened, relieved office space pressures from the Old Post Office, which actually again holds offices for the federal government. It’s interesting reading old newspaper articles at the time, because it was at the height of the dislike for the Second Empire,…
Ulyssess S. Grant Statue
Located at the northeast corner of Washington Square Park, the Ulysses S. Grant sculpture dates from 1888 and represents the most prominent future president to live in St. Louis. Sculpted in 1888 and dedicated in October of that year by Robert Porter Bringhurst, it also has a depiction of the Battle of Lookout Mountain, which…
Old Courthouse, Reopened
The Old Courthouse is looking great following years of being closed for the first renovation in decades. All exhibitions were removed and replaced with new ones, such as this one on the courthouse’s role in freedom suits and slavery. Of course, that story would be incomplete without including Harriet and Dred Scott, whose nationally influential…