History of Lafayette Square Archives - Page 2 of 4

1994: Ruth Weighs In On a Neighborhood Milestone

Back in 1995, first-wave restorationist and Lafayette Square MVP Ruth Kamphoefner composed a tidy summary of observations and cautionary tales from her 25 years in the neighborhood. It not only paid tribute to some outstanding doers, but feels nearly as appropriate today as it did then. I’m in awe of Ruth, and what she accomplished in her decades here. What I write is surely inadequate. She can better convey some of it for me. In her own words…

Early in the 1970s, so many people came to house tours that we had lines half a block long in front of houses. So many properties sold that we envisioned the complete restoration of Lafayette Square within a year or two.

“Pretty soon we won’t need to have any more house tours!” I gloated to Jerry Ferrell, LSRC president at the time.

Dreamer.

1859: Charles Gibson And Waverly Place

A description of Waverly Place by an enthusiastic real estate broker, on behalf of Charles Gibson. It appeared in the Daily Missouri Republican of June 23, 1859:

1979: The Pony Was The People

The LSRC neighborhood association turned ten years old in April of 1979. A resident wit and frequent contributor to the Marquis turned her attention to commemorating that anniversary. Linda Underwood lived for years on Whittemore Place. With her husband Gary, she was an early and frequent advocate for the neighborhood, involved in the day to day restoration of Lafayette Square. She did this with unfailing humor and the ability to take it all in stride.

Here’s a lightly edited and photo enhanced excerpt from her Marquis article, “You Think Lafayette Square Is Weird Today…Read On”

1893: Iron Men Of Lafayette Square – Christopher And Simpson

All the iron on Earth originated in large stars that existed before our Sun even formed. Iron is the final product of a star’s radioactive decay, which fuses hydrogen atoms to form ever heavier elements. When the hydrogen fuel is exhausted and sufficient mass accumulates in the core of the star, it no longer supports its own gravity, and explodes; or so I’m told. In that supernova explosion, huge chunks of iron can be thrown many light years into space. Such a chunk came to land in eastern Missouri’s St. Francois County and became Iron Mountain.

1988: The Hijacked Hibiscus

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported an interesting case, back in September 1988. This was straight from the mean streets of Lafayette Square. Bill Bryan of the P-D staff wrote a pair of brief articles, and this is a summary.

Jerry Patterson lived on the 2000 block of Lafayette Avenue. He phoned the police to report the apparent theft of a hibiscus tree from his back yard.

Officers responded to the call. They scoured the crime scene and determined that the plant in question may have been anemic. Dropping its dead leaves, it left a breadcrumb trail that might lead to the thief. They followed the shedded leaves to a residence in the 1700 block of Nicholson Place.

1994: Lafayette Square Street Names

What follows is a subset of a well-researched history of St. Louis city street names. Every name tells a story, and the byways of Lafayette Square are no exception. Please note my appreciation at the bottom, as a lot of good work went into this compilation.

(E-W) and (N-S) refer to direction each street runs.

1858: Palmatary Maps The Square

Richard Compton and Camile Dry rightly deserve credit for their amazingly comprehensive 1875 pictorial map of St Louis. It is the standard by which others are judged, and certainly worth your study if new to the subject. I highly recommend the expandable version on the Library of Congress site: https://www.loc.gov/resource/g4164sm.gpm00001/?st=gallery

1887: Horse Manure and The City

Horses are beautiful creatures; large, strong and well-suited to working with people. They found an immediate home in the heart of American cities.

St. Louis had challenges on many levels in dealing with its own waste. Without a dissipating wind the coal smoke hung like a low shroud over the city. Sewage often refused to drain properly, garbage was dumped in open pits, and animals died without proper burial.

2002: The Fall of Malcolm Bliss

If you check out the featured image, you’ll note that the most prominent building remaining from the old City Hospital complex is now known as the Georgian Condominiums (white arrow.) Behind that was the old Malcolm Bliss Hospital, shown with the red arrow.

Header photo — *Malcolm Bliss Hospital; 1962 Missouri Historical Society*

1933: Mary’s Dreamland On Park Ave

A recent essay dealt with the history of 1717 Park Avenue and its long backstory. https://lafayettesquarearchives.com/1896-a-stable-history-of-1717-park-av/

*1727 Park Avenue to the left; MO Historical Society; 1932*

A 1932 photo from that essay reveals the property next door. It’s still recognizable as today’s Square One restaurant and microbrewery. That two story building and side garden at 1727 Park Avenue was Mary’s Dreamland in the 1930s, and entertained the night crowd throughout its long tenure.