I found myself drawn to these house along the north side of Wyoming, on the old grounds of the English Cave beer garden. I have not been photographing as much during the “golden hour” and these buildings were glowing in the late light of the unseasonably cold autumn. More than a few people have been…
Lock Number 14, Illinois and Michigan Canal, LaSalle, Illinois
I have long been interested in the investigation of how Chicago passed St. Louis by in terms of economic power. I have also long felt that the discussion in St. Louis has existed at a very low intellectual level, usually focusing on the person’s own confirmation biases and background. In reality, if one tries to…
The Mysterious House, Revealed
We were shocked recently to discover that a wooded estate in the 17000 block of Wild Horse Creek Road had been cleared of its trees, revealing an extremely old house that according to satellite images once had multiple additions. It has now been stripped of those late encrustations, and while it is hard to tell…
Royale Orleans
Either you’ve experienced the St. Louis tradition of the Royale Orleans and its mostaccioli, or you haven’t. Perhaps you’ve even been there numerous times over the decades. One time after a wedding the caterer told us we could take the ice sculpture off the banquet table. That was a really dumb idea and we ended…
Carrollton, Revisited November 2022
I was in the vicinity of the now-demolished neighborhood of Carrollton, so I thought I would swing by and see who things looked. First off, I couldn’t believe I had missed this bowling alley the other times I had come by. Located northwest of Lambert International Airport off Natural Bridge Road, the subdivision’s streets are…
North Third Street, Laclede’s Landing
What’s there to say about what’s left of North Third Street in Laclede’s Landing? First of all, to exit the parking lot, which is currently the only way to get out of the neighborhood and onto Third Street on the south side, you have to walk out into traffic lanes because there is a fence…
North Second Street, West Side, Laclede’s Landing
Starting way up by the casino, there is this large rock sitting here. I have no idea what it is doing. Below, I thought it was a smart idea to put a dog park under the western approaches of the MLK Bridge since in general modern engineers do not like buildings constructed under spans anymore….
North Second Street, East Side, Laclede’s Landing
We’ll first look at the east side of North Second Street, heading north. The two buildings on the right are the Greeley and Cutlery buildings, respectively. Back in 1980, the two buildings were shabby, looked abandoned, and the Cutlery Building was still sporting a fire escape like something you would see in the Lower East…
Clamorgan Alley, Laclede’s Landing
Clamorgan Alley is not the historic name for this alley, which cuts between the 700 blocks of North First and Second streets. But it received that name because Jacques Clamorgan once owned this land, and in a famous court case, after giving the land to his slave, Esther, in an effort to avoid creditors (something…
North First Street, Laclede’s Landing
We come up the steep incline and reach North First Street, where the above photograph captures the street in 1968, right before the grand plans for redevelopment had begun. Interestingly, old fashioned street lights had already appeared. Below, on the southwest corner, a plaza that appears to still be incomplete replaced the vacant lot where…