The old Soulard Branch of the St. Louis Public Library has had several uses over the last decade besides the commercial space facing 7th Boulevard. There was “The Library” and then “The Archives.” They’re both gone. Below, in McKinley Heights, I still can’t believe that Second Empire house below is sitting vacant; the property values…
Tag: Beaux-Arts
Checking In on the Metro East: Venice into Madison
On a lark I decided to see what was happening over in the Metro East, so I headed over the McKinley Bridge and first passed through Venice, Illinois. The first stop is a building that has long been many of my friends’ favorite, with its cool central pavilion, the Venice Recreation Hall. After that is…
Pershing Place Between Euclid Avenue and Kingshighway
In between Euclid and Kingshighway, Pershing Place takes on a distinctively different character, with much more emphasis on English influences in architecture. Interestingly, the lots on the north side of the former Berlin Avenue, which Pershing Place once was before World War I, were actually platted as part of the larger Hortense Place addition. There…
Pershing Place Between North Taylor and Euclid Avenues
Laid out originally as Berlin Avenue, the private street that stretches from North Taylor Avenue to North Kingshighway is cut in two by North Euclid Avenue. We’ll look at the street in two parts. I don’t think Pershing Place was laid out as a private street, and its original name of Berlin Avenue seems to…
Newport, Kentucky
Alright, alright, we’re done with Cincinnati, at least for a year or so until I go back. But before we head back to St. Louis, we’re going to visit the two historic suburbs across the river in Kentucky. We’ll start with Newport, which is one of those surprises I never expected to find across the…
Cincinnati Music Hall, Over the Rhine, Cincinnati, Ohio
The Cincinnati Music Hall, built in 1878, is one of those monumental buildings in America that might very well have been swept away by urban renewal, replaced by a new performing arts center. Instead, it has been revitalized, and almost 150 years later, is still very much part of the cultural fabric of the city…
Old Louisville, Part Two
Continuing our look around the Old Louisville neighborhood of Louisville, we see an evolution of styles, but again, they are in keeping with what we would expect to see in St. Louis. In this case, we now see what would be best described as Renaissance Revival. Also, there are houses that have elements of the…
Good Hope M.S. Baptist Church, Revisited
I realized recently that sadly the church at West Florissant Avenue and North Grand Boulevard is clearly vacant. Formerly known as Water Tower Baptist Church, it had held out until recently, but judging from the windows that have blown open or are hanging by a single hinge, the telltale signs are clear. Like much of…
Euclid Avenue Between Lindell, Maryland and McPherson Avenues
I’ve always found it interesting how there is a quiet section of private streets off Euclid Avenue in the Central West End in between Maryland Avenue (which you can see here and here) in the south, and McPherson Avenue in the north (which you can see here and here). Above is the southeast corner of…
Near North Riverfront, Early Fall 2022
It had been a little while since I had photographed the rapidly diminishing warehouses of the Near North Riverfront, specifically the ones just to the north of the casino, which has weirdly changed its name to the Horseshoe, which makes it sound like it should be out in the middle of nowhere in Texas or…