The west side of Virginia Avenue south of Blow Street has a group of very old houses that makes me suspect there was some type of industry nearby.

These wood frame houses are old, perhaps dating back to the 1860s or 70s, right around the time Carondelet was annexed into the City of St. Louis.

Overall, the houses are small and simple, with minimal ornament.

There is another cluster of very old wood frame houses, which are still in good shape and with some later additions to their original forms.

Again, we see another example of a house type more typical in other Midwestern industrial cities below.