In January of 1886, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported “crowds of coasters at the northwestern gate of Lafayette Park.” Sledding (aka ‘coasting’) in the 19th Century attracted “long lines of finely-dressed ladies and gentlemen.” They “shot down the steep incline from the flag pole, went whizzing through the big stone gates, across Park Avenue, and down the long hill (Missouri Avenue) to Chouteau Avenue. The neighborhood resounded with the laughter and raillery of the merry crowds.” Good times for a Saturday evening by all accounts.
Continue reading “1888: Sledding In the 19th Century”Category: Lafayette Park
1970: Sketches Of Lafayette Square
Here are a terrific series of sketches, originally published in St Louis Commerce magazine in May of 1970.
The drawings are by George Conrey, who was head of the art department at the Post-Dispatch in the early 1960’s. The magazine itself was a periodical from what is now known as the St Louis Regional Chamber Of Commerce. It began publication way back in 1918, about the time George was graduating art school at Washington University. It ceased operations in 2012.
1927: Turning Lafayette Park Into An Airfield
Aviation history leads through Leonardo Da Vinci, to the Montgolfier and Wright Brothers. But for real celebrity, in flew Charles A. Lindbergh!
2019: Ode To Ginkgo, Or Eau De Ginkgo
Soon after a craft beer festival in Lafayette Park, a neighbor whose dog was mixing with mine commented on a strong smell, like that of someone having barfed nearby.
That odor actually IS the smell of someone barfing nearby. It’s butyric acid, and it’s formed by the rotting fruit of the female ginkgo tree. I say female because there are two sexes to this tree. Not that this would help you select one to plant, as they are also known to change sex from male to female on short notice.
Continue reading “2019: Ode To Ginkgo, Or Eau De Ginkgo”2020: Lafayette Park Ferns – Of Fiddleheads and Rabbit Holes
We live in a neighborhood steeped in its own history. The times change fast, but it’s comforting to consider the constants around us, and Lafayette Park holds a big bouquet of them.
Continue reading “2020: Lafayette Park Ferns – Of Fiddleheads and Rabbit Holes”1914: The Life Of A Lafayette Park Policeman
Say what you will about composer Richard Strauss – he knew how to incite an audience. In his opera Salome, the temptress of the same name performs the erotic dance of the seven veils for King Herod. This in return for anything she named, and she demanded the head of John the Baptist. After strenuous objections by Herod, she gets her way. When she receives his head and begins affectionately stroking its hair, she’s rushed by Herod’s indignant soldiers and crushed to death by their shields. This was hot stuff for 1911. When the production came to St Louis, it caused a sensation.