A hearty and much-deserved congratulations to my close friends Jeff and Randy Vines for the sixteenth anniversary of their shop Stl Style on Cherokee Street. While they’d been making their t-shirts for years before that, their dedication to a brick and mortar store in the city they love is something I’ve always respected about them….
Tag: Cool People
Excel Bottling Company, Breese, Illinois
Found St. Louis arranged a tour for us of the Excel Bottling Co. in Breese, Illinois. It was quite the experience, and we had as our guide the owner of the company, Bill Meier. As a licensed bottler of Ski Soda, they actually still use a historic bottling line, which you can see below. However,…
Pinkie Tony House, Destroyed by Fire
The house I first documented back in September 2014 was sadly destroyed by fire on October 22. Shockingly, when we went by to examine the ruins, there was nothing left but a pile of rubble. Investigations of Sanborn Fire Insurance maps revealed the house, which was extremely old, perhaps the 1860s but definitely at least…
Tony’s on North Broadway
As we commemorate the closing of Tony’s yesterday, one of the most famous fine dining establishments in the history of St. Louis, I thought it would be fun to look back at their original location at 826 N. Broadway, in the heart of what was known as Commission Row. Today, the vendors who once crowded…
Downtown Granite City, Spring 2024
I was visiting Granite City to see another amazing GCADD exhibit, so I thought I would photograph the downtown again, it having been five years since the last time. Everything looked the same, but there were some differences. For starters, the Moose Lodge has been demolished. The steel mill is still there for the time…
Cassilly and Cassilly Shop
The Cassilly and Cassilly Shop on Lafayette Avenue has been in the news a lot recently when its owner, who also operates the currently closed Avyan Hotel to the east, tried to apply for a demolition permit again like he did last year (and failed). The building actually has a really interesting history. Built in…
Dad’s Cookies
314 Day is tomorrow and I wanted to bring you a great story the day before about a St. Louis Institution. Everyone knows about Dad’s Cookies in Dutchtown, but did you know that it was originally part of a chain out of Los Angeles? They are the last store to survive after every other one…
New Harriett and Dred Scott Memorial, Calvary Cemetery
I was excited to attend the dedication of the new Dred and Harriett Scott memorial in Calvary Cemetery. There had been a small tombstone, but it was recently upgraded to an easier to find and much more fitting monument. As more and more Americans do not know who the Scotts are, it is more and…
Other Fall Updates, Fires, Demolitions, Etc.
It finally happened, the Mullanphy Emigrant Home, which I last looked at back in June of this year, caught on fire and burned to the ground on the night of September 14th. There is certainly no grand conspiracy, but simply the fact that overnight lows reached 50 degrees, and a squatter’s fire probably spread out…
Big Muddy Dance Company Presents: Blaze
As I’ve done in the past, I wanted to alert readers to an upcoming cultural event that I think is worth your time. Big Muddy Dance Company is offering up another performance this Friday and Saturday. From their press release: A specially curated blend of exciting new works and audience favorites, featuring world premiere choreography…