National park in St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Gateway Arch National Park
is an
American national park
located in
St. Louis
,
Missouri
, near the starting point of the
Lewis and Clark Expedition
.
In its initial form as a
national memorial
, it was established in 1935 to commemorate:
The national park consists of the Gateway Arch, a steel
catenary arch
that has become the definitive icon of St. Louis; a park along the Mississippi River on the site of the earliest buildings of the city; the
Old Courthouse
, a former state and federal courthouse where the
Dred Scott
case originated; and the 140,000 sq ft (13,000 m
2
)
museum at the Gateway Arch
. It is the smallest national park in the United States at 91 acres (37 ha), less than 2% the size of the next-smallest,
Hot Springs National Park
.
The immediate surroundings of the
Gateway Arch
were initially designated the
Jefferson National Expansion Memorial
by secretarial order on December 21, 1935. The Gateway Arch was completed on October 28, 1965. The park is maintained by the
National Park Service
(NPS).
The area surrounding the arch was redesignated as the Gateway Arch National Park in 2018. This change has been controversial due to the nature of the site (
national parks
typically include conserved natural landscapes and significant opportunities for nature recreation, whereas sites that have primarily historical and architectural significance are usually given other NPS designations).
[2]
Several publications noted that the addition of Gateway Arch as a national park eroded the significance associated with the "national park" designation, and some suggested that the change was made in order to promote tourism rather than to conserve a nature area.
[3]
Components
[
edit
]
The Gateway Arch
[
edit
]
The
Gateway Arch
, known as the "Gateway to the West," is the tallest structure in Missouri. It was designed by the
Finnish-American
architect
Eero Saarinen
and the
German-American
structural engineer
Hannskarl Bandel
in 1947 and built between 1963 and October 1965. It stands 630 feet (192 m) tall and 630 feet (192 m) wide at its base. The legs are 54 feet (16.5 m) wide at the base, narrowing to 17 feet (5.2 m) at the arch. There is a unique tram system to carry passengers to the observation room at the top of the arch.
Old Courthouse
[
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]
The
Old Courthouse
is built on land originally deeded by St. Louis founder
Auguste Chouteau
. It marks the location over which the arch reaches. Its dome was built during the
American Civil War
and is similar to the dome on the
United States Capitol
which was also built during the Civil War. It was the site of the local trials in the
Dred Scott
case.
The courthouse is the only portion of the memorial west of
Interstate 44
. To the west of the Old Courthouse is the
Gateway Mall
between Market and Chestnut Streets which is only interrupted by the
Civil Courts Building
which features a pyramid model of the
Mausoleum of Mausolus
(which was one of the
Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
) on its roof. When the Civil Courts building was built in the 1920s, the Chouteau family sued to regain the property belonging to the Old Courthouse because it had been deeded in perpetuity to be a courthouse.
Museum at the Gateway Arch
[
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]
Underneath the arch is a visitor center, entered from a circular entryway facing the Old Courthouse. Within the center, a project to rebuild the Museum at the Gateway Arch was completed in July 2018. The new museum features exhibits on a variety of topics including westward expansion and the construction of the Arch, all told through a St. Louis lens. Tucker Theater, finished in 1968 and renovated 30 years later, has about 285 seats and shows a documentary (
Monument to the Dream
) on the arch's construction. A second theater was added in 1993 but removed in 2018 as part of the CityArchRiver renovation project. Also located in the visitor center are a gift shop and cafe.
History
[
edit
]
1930s
[
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]
The
Old Courthouse
from the observation area at the top of the arch
The memorial was developed largely through the efforts of St. Louis civic booster
Luther Ely Smith
who first pitched the idea in 1933, was the long-term chairman of the committee that selected the area and persuaded
Franklin Roosevelt
in 1935 to make it a National Park Service unit after St. Louis passed a bond issue to begin building it and who partially financed the 1947 architectural contest that selected the arch.
[4]
In the early 1930s the United States began looking for a suitable memorial for
Thomas Jefferson
(the
Washington Monument
and the newly built
Lincoln Memorial
were the only large Presidential memorials at the time).
Shortly after
Thanksgiving
in 1933 Smith who had been on the commission to build the
George Rogers Clark National Historical Park
in Indiana, was returning via train when he noticed the poor condition of the original
platted
location of St. Louis along the Mississippi. He thought that the memorial to Jefferson should be on the actual location that was symbolic of one of Jefferson's greatest triumphs?the
Louisiana Purchase
.
The originally platted area of St. Louis was the site of:
Almost all of the historic buildings associated with this period had been replaced by newer buildings. His idea was to raze all of the buildings in the original St. Louis platted area and replace it with a park with "a central feature, a shaft, a building, an arch, or something which would symbolize American culture and civilization."
Smith pitched the idea to
Bernard Dickmann
who quickly assembled a meeting of St. Louis civic leaders on December 15, 1933, at the Jefferson Hotel and they endorsed the plan and Smith became chairman of what would become the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Association (a position he would hold until 1949 with a one-year exception).
The Commission then defined the area, got cost estimates of $30 million to buy the land, clear the buildings and erect a park and monument. With promises from the federal government (via the United States Territorial Expansion Memorial Commission) to join if the City of St. Louis could raise money.
The area to be included in the park was bounded by the
Eads Bridge
/Washington Avenue on the north and Poplar Street on the south, the Mississippi River on the east and Third Street (now
Interstate 44
) on the west. The
Old Courthouse
, just west of Third Street, was added in 1940.
[5]
The only building in this area not included was the
Old Cathedral
, which is on the site of St. Louis first church and was opposite the home of St. Louis founder
Auguste Chouteau
. The founders of the city were buried in its graveyard (but were moved in 1849 to
Bellefontaine Cemetery
during a
cholera
outbreak).
Taking away 40 blocks in the center of St. Louis was bitterly fought by some sources?particularly the
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
.
[6]
On September 10, 1935, the voters of St. Louis supposedly approved a $7.5 million bond issue to buy the property. Local architect Louis La Beaume provided a preliminary design proposal for the site that included multiple museums, fountains and obelisks.
[7]
Soon after, it was revealed that the election was rigged, and the true number of voters in favor of the demolition of the riverfront is unknown.
[8]
The buildings were bought for $7 million by the federal government via
Eminent domain
and was subject to considerable litigation but were ultimately bought at 131.99 percent of assessed valuation.
[9]
Roosevelt inspected the memorial area on October 14, 1936 during the dedication of the St. Louis Soldiers Memorial. Included in the party was then Senator
Harry S. Truman
.
[10]
1940s
[
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]
The land was to be cleared by 1942. Among the buildings razed was the "Old Rock House" 1818 home of fur trader
Manuel Lisa
(now occupied by the stairs on the north side of the arch) and the 1819 home of original St. Louis pioneer
Jean Pierre Chouteau
at First (Main) and Washington streets.
[11]
The architectural competition for a monument was delayed by
World War II
. Interest in the monument was fed after the war as it was to be the first big monument in the post-World War II era.
The estimated cost of the competition was $225,000 and Smith personally donated $40,000. Civic leaders held the nationwide competition in 1947 to select a design for the main portion of the Memorial space.
Architect
Eero Saarinen
won this competition with plans for a 590-foot (180 m)
catenary
arch to be placed on the banks of the
Mississippi River
. However, these plans were modified over the next 15 years, placing the arch on higher ground and adding 40 feet (12 m) in height and width.
The central architectural feature at the base of the arch is the
Old Courthouse
, which was once the tallest building in Missouri and has a dome similar to the
United States Capitol
and was placed on the building during the
American Civil War
at the same time as that on the U.S. Capitol.
Saarinen developed the shape with the help of architectural engineer
Hannskarl Bandel
. It is not a pure inverted
catenary
. Saarinen preferred a shape that was slightly elongated and thinner towards the top, a shape that produces a subtle soaring effect, and transfers more of the structure's weight downward rather than outward at the base.
When Saarinen won the competition, the official notification was sent to "E. Saarinen", thinking it to be the architect's father
Eliel Saarinen
, who had also submitted an entry. The family celebrated with a bottle of champagne, and two hours later an embarrassed official called to say the winner was, in fact, the younger Saarinen. The elder Saarinen then broke out a second bottle of champagne to celebrate his son's success.
Among the five finalists was local St. Louis architect
Harris Armstrong
.
1950s
[
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]
Land for the memorial was formally dedicated on June 10, 1950, by
Harry S. Truman
. However, the
Korean War
began and the project was put on hold.
On June 23, 1959, work begins on covering railroad tracks that cut across the memorial grounds.
1960s
[
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]
On February 11, 1961, excavation began, and that September 1, Saarinen died. On February 12, 1963, the first stainless steel triangle that formed the first section of the arch was set in place on the south leg.
On October 28, 1965, it was completed, costing approximately $15 million to build. The adjacent park was designed by landscape architect
Dan Kiley
. Along with all other historical areas of the National Park Service, the memorial was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
on October 15, 1966.
Vice President
Hubert Humphrey
and
Secretary of the Interior
Stewart Udall
dedicated the arch on May 25, 1968.
1980s
[
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]
In 1984, Congress authorized the enlargement of the Memorial to include up to 100 acres (40 ha) on the east bank of the Mississippi River in
East St. Louis, Illinois
. Funds were authorized to begin land acquisition, but Congress placed a moratorium upon NPS land acquisitions in fiscal year 1998. The moratorium continued into the 21st century, with expansion becoming less likely because of the construction of a
riverboat gambling facility
and related amenities.
1990s
[
edit
]
During the
Great Flood of 1993
, Mississippi flood waters reached halfway up the Grand Staircase on the east.
In 1999, the arch tram queue areas were renovated at a cost of about $2.2 million. As well, the
Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site
in
St. Louis County, Missouri
, was put under the jurisdiction of the Superintendent of the Memorial.
2000s
[
edit
]
The Missouri state quarter depicting the Gateway Arch and the
Lewis and Clark Expedition
The arch was featured on the Missouri state quarter in 2003.
In 2007 St. Louis Mayor
Francis Slay
and former Missouri Senator
John Danforth
asked the National Park Service to create a more "active" use of the grounds of the memorial and model it on
Millennium Park
in
Chicago
including the possibility of restaurants, fountains, ice skating, swimming, and other activities.
[12]
The National Park Service was not in favor of the plan noting that the only other overt development pressure on national park property has been at the
Jackson Hole Airport
in
Grand Teton National Park
[13]
2010s
[
edit
]
Renovations
[
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]
For most of its existence, the Memorial was largely separated from the rest of
Downtown St. Louis
by a sunken section of
I-70
(now I-44 with the rerouting of I-70 over a new bridge), but in 2014, a lid was installed over the highway, creating the foundation for a park connecting downtown with the Memorial grounds. In November 2015, Saarinen's original master plan was brought to fruition. Building of the Gateway Arch Connector linking the Old Courthouse with the grounds of the arch was completed.
[14]
This design, and other design components were imagined by Michael Van Valkenburg Associates. In September 2010
Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates
won a design contest to "re-envision the visitor experience" of the grounds.
[15]
[16]
The project, originally planned for completion in 2015 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the opening of the arch,
[17]
was completed in 2018.
[18]
It includes:
[19]
- replacing the north garage with an outdoor amphitheater, an explorers garden for children and an addition of 7.5 acres of green space.
- new cobblestone plaza between the arch and the river
- elevated walkways on the
Illinois
side, reaching 35 feet and winding through a new bird sanctuary, (Congress has authorized the purchase of the Illinois acreage)
- an expanded museum below the Gateway Arch with a new western entrance nearly a block closer to downtown than the original entrances.
In 2016, many
ash trees
on the grounds were removed to preempt damage from
emerald ash borers
.
[20]
Prior to the work of CityArchRiver, there were 1,800 trees on the grounds. There are now 4,200.
The $380 million project was funded both privately and publicly. The public funding, provided largely by Proposition P, totaled $159 million. The remaining $221 million were secured via fundraising efforts of Gateway Arch Park foundation.
[21]
Redesignation
[
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]
On June 26, 2017, Senator
Roy Blunt
(R-Missouri) introduced the Gateway Arch National Park Designation Act (
Pub. L.
Tooltip Public Law (United States)
115?128 (text)
(PDF)
) to redesignate Jefferson National Expansion Memorial as Gateway Arch National Park. The legislation was cosponsored by Senator
Claire McCaskill
(D-Missouri).
[22]
In July 2017, Acting Deputy Director of the National Park Service Robert Vogel testified before the
Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks
. Vogel stated that the
Department of the Interior
supported changing the name to Gateway Arch National Monument, rather than National Park, to maintain consistency with existing naming conventions. He likened the site to the
Statue of Liberty National Monument
, noting that existing national parks encompassed thousands of acres at minimum.
[23]
The United States Congress approved the bill in early 2018. U.S. President
Donald Trump
signed the act into law on February 22, 2018, officially renaming the site Gateway Arch National Park.
[24]
The new designation has been seen as an attempt to increase tourism in St. Louis.
[25]
The name has been criticized as inappropriate by some visitors.
[26]
Chouteau Greenway
[
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]
The Chouteau Greenway Project is a public-private partnership that aims to connect
Forest Park
and the
Washington University in St. Louis
Danforth Campus
to Gateway Arch National Park. Among the partners leading this project are the Arch to Park Collaborative,
St. Louis City
, and
Washington University in St. Louis
.
[27]
[28]
See also
[
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]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"National Register Information System"
.
National Register of Historic Places
.
National Park Service
. July 9, 2010.
- ^
"Should Gateway Arch Be a National Park?"
.
Outside Magazine
. Retrieved
January 28,
2023
.
- ^
"What's In A Name: Gateway Arch National Park"
.
www.nationalparkstraveler.org
. Retrieved
November 27,
2023
.
- ^
"Luther Ely Smith: Founder of a Memorial"
(PDF)
.
The Museum Gazette
. National Park Service.
Archived
(PDF)
from the original on February 16, 2008
. Retrieved
January 11,
2008
.
- ^
O’Neil, Tim (December 13, 2012).
"With cornice repairs complete, scaffold around St. Louis' Old Courthouse coming down"
.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
.
- ^
"Editorial".
Jefferson City Daily Capital News
. June 24, 1939.
[
full citation needed
]
- ^
"St. Louis River Front Memorial Approved by Voters"
.
The Southeast Missourian
. September 11, 1935
. Retrieved
November 10,
2016
.
- ^
"Fraudulent Election Provides Funds to Create Arch Grounds"
.
St. Louis Post Dispatch
. Retrieved
January 14,
2024
.
- ^
"St. Louis Site Obtained for Jefferson Memorial"
.
The Hammond Times
. Vol. 34, no. 5. United Press. June 22, 1939. p. 15 – via
Newspaper Archive
.
- ^
"225,00 See Roosevelt in St. Louis".
Moberly Monitor-Index
. Associated Press. October 14, 1936.
[
full citation needed
]
- ^
"St. Louis Landmarks"
. genealogyinstlouis.accessgenealogy.com. Archived from
the original
on April 7, 2008
. Retrieved
January 11,
2008
.
- ^
Salter, Jim (August 29, 2007).
"St. Louis hopes to obtain part of Arch grounds"
.
Southeast Missourian
. Archived from
the original
on June 28, 2018
. Retrieved
April 20,
2017
.
- ^
"City Leaders Pitch Local Control of Arch Grounds"
.
St. Louis Post Dispatch
. August 29, 2007. Archived from
the original
on January 31, 2008.
- ^
Bomar, Mary A.
(August 2007).
"Summary of Park Centennial Strategies"
(PDF)
. National Park Service.
Archived
(PDF)
from the original on September 11, 2007
. Retrieved
February 15,
2008
.
- ^
"The City + the Arch + the River | St. Louis Arch International Design Competition"
. Archived from
the original
on September 3, 2011
. Retrieved
May 25,
2021
.
- ^
"Practice - AIA"
. Archived from
the original
on November 30, 2012.
- ^
Barr, Diana (September 15, 2015).
"Gateway Arch grounds renovations fall further behind schedule"
.
St. Louis Business Journal
. Retrieved
June 22,
2017
.
- ^
"Gateway Arch museum delayed until summer 2018"
.
KMOV.com
. June 21, 2017. Archived from
the original
on June 21, 2017
. Retrieved
June 24,
2017
.
- ^
"New York firm MVVA wins Arch design competition | Metro"
. stltoday.com. September 21, 2010
. Retrieved
July 16,
2016
.
- ^
Taketa, Kristen.
"Timber! Most of St. Louis' 15,000 ash trees coming down to stop bug invasion"
. Retrieved
August 26,
2016
.
- ^
Moffitt, Kelly.
"Planners hit fundraising goal for Arch grounds renovation"
. Retrieved
June 21,
2017
.
- ^
"Gateway Arch National Park Designation Act (2018 - S. 1438)"
.
GovTrack.us
. Retrieved
January 12,
2023
.
- ^
Vogel, Robert (July 19, 2017).
"STATEMENT OF ROBERT VOGEL, ACTING DEPUTY DIRECTOR, NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, BEFORE THE SENATE ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES SUBCOMMITTEE ON NATIONAL PARKS, CONCERNING S. 1438, TO REDESIGNATE JEFFERSON NATIONAL EXPANSION MEMORIAL IN THE STATE OF MISSOURI AS GATEWAY ARCH NATIONAL PARK"
.
www.doi.gov
. U.S. Department of the Interior Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs
. Retrieved
January 12,
2023
.
- ^
"President Donald J. Trump Signs S. 1438 into Law"
.
whitehouse.gov
– via
National Archives
.
- ^
McCracken, Kate (December 18, 2022).
"Gateway Arch gains national park status, revitalizes landmark"
.
Webster Journal
. Retrieved
January 12,
2023
.
- ^
Pennington, Emily (December 17, 2021).
"Should Gateway Arch Be a National Park?"
.
Outside Online
. Retrieved
January 12,
2023
.
- ^
"WashU a partner in greenway project to connect Forest Park to the Arch"
.
Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis
. October 11, 2017
. Retrieved
August 3,
2019
.
- ^
"Chouteau Greenway Master Plan"
.
Great Rivers Greenway
. Retrieved
August 3,
2019
.
- National Register of Historic Places Nomination Forms
External links
[
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]
Teacher resources
[
edit
]
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