There’s still a fair bit of the remnants of the distant outbuildings of Union Station, down towards the Mill Creek railyards. This maintenance building, now roofless, once sat right where the tracks headed into the station from the main lines. This gigantic crane sits where it was left; I’m glad they chose to preserve it…
Tag: Mill Creek
Castle Ballroom in Bad Shape
Update: The building has now been completely demolished as of the summer of 2014. The Castle Ballroom suffered a major collapse of one of its exterior walls during a recent storm, exposing the interior to the elements, which will eventually lead to a death sentence for this important piece of African-American history in St. Louis. It…
Mill Creek Modernist Office Buildings Preview
The demolition of the vibrant if rundown Mill Creek Valley in the name of urban renewal in the 1950’s is increasingly well-documented. But I realized that in its place rose some interesting Modernist office buildings, perhaps more fitting for a suburban context, but nonetheless an important relic of St. Louis’s past. I will revisit the…
Castle Ballroom
Update: The ballroom suffered a structural collapse and was demolished in 2014. The Castle Ballroom, nominated for the National Register of Historic Places, is a little rough around the edges right now, but is still a stable and important building. One of the few buildings left from the historic Mill Creek neighborhood, the ballroom provided…
“The Disposable Neighborhood”
This post used to show a video of the demolition of portions of Vandeventer Place and other parts of the city nearby. It was taken down at some point after 2012.
“122 Eyes”
I found this old video for social services in St. Louis; it features some fascinating views of a St. Louis now largely gone. I suspect some of the footage is from the central corridor demolished in the 1950’s and 60’s.
Sole Survivor, Scott Avenue
Update: Now the home of Arch Reactor. Why is this building still here, and the other fifty building within a two block radius all gone? It is one of the great mysteries of urban renewal; why do the wrecking balls only take 98% of the building stock, and not 100%? Was the owner particularly tenacious,…
Missouri Pacific Roundhouses in Between Compton and Cardinal North of Chouteau
I also determined that there was a large brick roundhouse right in the middle of the Mill Creek Valley just east of Compton Ave. The two Sanborn maps show the whole complex; for a sense of place, the little wood roundhouse is the same structure in both maps. No traces of the roundhouses remain, and…
Cupples Station Warehouses: The Early History
St. Louis has had a long love/hate relationship for the blocks of the city just south of Market Street. What was once an actual stream, Mill Creek, slowly transformed over the course of the city’s history. In a way, the history of Mill Creek in downtown mirrors the rising and falling fortunes of St. Louis…
Union Station Train Shed
Update: The train shed was converted into a convention center and aquarium. Such an amazing space, and in my opinion much more useful as a wide open space, clear of impediments. We will see what the future holds for the train shed.