Ironically, as I was photographing this building to document its post-fire condition, a new fire was already smoldering deep inside the old Crunden-Martin building. Reports that homeless people may have accidentally started the fire with wood provided by charities remain unsubstantiated, and certainly the fire would have destroyed evidence of their presence.

I have covered Chouteau’s Landing frequently in the past, and in light of my look at the Cupples Warehouses last week, I see some similarities, with obvious differences in time. Chouteau’s Landing actually still possessed many working factories at a time when Laclede’s Landing was being redeveloped, and while the Cupples buildings were sitting empty and neglected. Fortunes have turned, and I hope this amazing area of the city can be saved before any more buildings are lost.

A few year’s back, there was a proposal for redevelopment, but it went nowhere.