Just south of Glencoe on Missouri Highway 109 is Marycliffe, which is a Marianist retreat set along the bluffs of the Meramec River.

I stumbled on the retreat center recently, and its 1967 building, which we’ll look at first. I couldn’t find any signs of anyone on the property.

This was originally the land of James Yeatman, who was a prominent businessman in St. Louis. The old Central High School was originally named after him, as was the neighborhood around it since he had owned large portions of the area in North St. Louis. He also owned large swaths of property out in what is now Wildwood in West County. He was wealthy!

The mansion above and below was originally known as Woodcliff when the property was owned by Peyton Carr, who purchased it from the Yeatmans in 1896. The house was built in 1905.

After being sold to a brewers’ union in 1943, the Marianists, also known as the Society of Mary, bought the property for their novitiate (I’ve now used that term twice in one week) in 1949.

I do not know the future of the property.