There’s nothing but industrial wasteland to see now where the Polish parish of Our Lady of Czestochowa once stood from 1907 to 1957, swept away by the failed urban renewal plan for the Kosciusko neighborhood. But for a half century, the scrappy church thrived among the tenements and factories that filled the rough and tumble…
The Country House, Strathmore
Which one of these is not like the other? I couldn’t find the name of the original builder of this stately house whose architectural style and form stands out from its newer neighbors, but it was here by the late 1930s and the estate, according to modern real estate records was named Strathmore. While it…
Trinity Lutheran Church, Town and Country
Sometimes ironically called the “cash register church,” Trinity Lutheran Church, Chesterfield at the intersection of Clayton Road and Missouri Highway 141 is actually a historically rich and interesting congregation. It’s actually within the boundaries of the suburb of Town and Country but identifies with Chesterfield, further to the west. This Trinity is in the Evangelical…
Former Epiphany Episcopal Church
Known as Church of the Epiphany or Epiphany Episcopal Church, it seems that the congregation moved to its final location at Dougherty Ferry and Ballas roads in 1960 and lasted until 2007. The interior featured a sculpture by Elizabeth Phelan of bronze and walnut entitled “Christus Rex,” or Christ the King. I do not know…
St. Clare of Assisi Roman Catholic Church
The current church of St. Clare of Assisi dates from 1965, though the parish was formed several years before. The congregation used the chapel of the adjacent Passionists nuns, who still exist next door until its own church was built. As we have discussed lately, the church is similar to St. Martin de Porres in…
Grace Episcopal Church
Leaving behind their original church to the west, Grace Episcopal moved into their new sanctuary in 1961 at 514 East Argonne. A newspaper article related the details of the new church: designed by Frederick Dunn & Associates, it was to be built in two parts. Earlier this year I looked at Dunn’s National Garden Club…
Meramec Highlands, Revisited
The Meramec Highlands Hotel must have been a sight to behold. Sitting high up on the bluffs, just to the east of the eponymous train tunnel, it was a short ride out from the city on the St. Louis and San Francisco (Frisco) Railroad. Guests could stay at the hotel, as well as the cottages…
Meramec Highlands Tunnel
Nestled behind the backyards of a subdivision is a surprise. Near the West and East Barrett Tunnels is a third tunnel, the Meramec Highlands Tunnel, high up on a bluff overlooking the Meramec River Valley. It was constructed in 1883 by the St. Louis-San Francisco Railroad. Like the other two, it was replaced just to…
East Barrett Tunnel
Moving past Barrett Station, further on down the tracks is the East Barrett Tunnel. The western entrance to the tunnel has been covered up, most likely by the northern approach to the Barrett Station Road bridge over the train tracks. The eastern tunnel is much larger and longer than the western tunnel. Due to the…
Barrett Station
Sitting in between the two Barrett tunnels, Barrett Station, or sometimes written Barrett’s, has appeared in newspapers since at least 1854. Considering the tunnels were completed in 1853, that places the station at least almost at the beginning of the Pacific Railroad’s opening in the area. The 1854 Globe-Democrat article speaks of the outlay of…