The first post-World War II subdivision we’re going to look at in Florissant is Paddock Hills, located behind the Church of the Master off Parker Road. The prolific Mayer-Raisher Mayer developed subdivisions around the metropolitan region, but often specialized in ranch houses, as seen in these photographs. Interestingly, there is what appears to be linoleum…
Tag: Florissant
Two Modernist Churches in Florissant, Part Two
Founded in 1951, the massive Lutheran Church of the Atonement continues the trend of Modernism fulfilling the needs for new congregations as Florissant rapidly grew after World War II. The stained glass is simple, and overall there is the overall trend of simple vertical lines with limited ornament, sitting on a bend on North New…
Two Modernist Churches in Florissant, Part One
For lack of a better word to describe them, A-frame churches can be spotted popping up around the St. Louis region after World War II. Two of the most interesting are in the Florissant area. The first one, St. Mark’s United Methodist Church on Graham Road, is perhaps the tallest and largest. While I can…
Halls Ferry Medical Arts Building
I give full credit to Toby Weiss of BELT St. Louis for introducing me to this unique building on New Halls Ferry Road. Perhaps representing a certain “attitude” of Modernism, Toby chronicled the medical building in two posts, first in July of 2008, and then again in September of 2010, as the owners did some…
Former North American Martyrs Roman Catholic Church, Florissant
There was a blossoming of Modernist church architecture in St. Louis after World War II, particularly in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese. As hundreds of thousands of people moved to the suburbs, some pre-existing parishes saw new churches built, while brand new parishes sprang up, as well. In the case of North American Martyrs, it was…
Exploring Florissant
Note: I’m happy to report that Bellefontaine Cemetery is back open to the public after being closed due to some recent storm damage. Please go check out the cemetery if you haven’t already! The first place we’re going to be looking at in our new direction is Florissant, which was suggested by a reader several…
Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church, Florissant
Update: I went back and looked at the neighborhood around the church in greater depth in August of 2023, including National Register properties. It’s a little difficult to photograph Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church in the middle of downtown Florissant, but it is a fantastic example of Gothic Revival architecture, replacing the original church in…
Former St. Stanislaus Seminary
The old Jesuit St. Stanislaus Semimary is perhaps one of the oldest and most historic buildings in St. Louis County. When it was first built, it was far out in the country, and as the aerial photograph below demonstrates, was still very much so well into the early Twentieth Century. Its address on Howderschell Road,…
Shrine of St. Ferdinand, Florissant
Update: See the parish of Sacred Heart here, also in Florissant. Damaged by floods in July of 2022. In the future, I’ll write more about the Shrine of St. Ferdinand, which possesses some of the oldest buildings in the metro area. For the time being, here are some photographs of the historic complex. St. Philippine…