Midtown is a

neighborhood A neighbourhood (British English, Irish English, Australian English and Canadian English) or neighborhood (American English; see spelling differences) is a geographically localised community within a larger city, town, suburb or rural area, ...

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

. It is located west of the city riverfront at the intersection of

Grand Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and comm ...

and Lindell Boulevards. It is home to the campus of

Saint Louis University Saint Louis University (SLU) is a private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university with campuses in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, United States, and Madrid, Spain. Founded in 1818 by Louis William Valentine DuBourg, ...

and the Grand Center Arts District.

Historic status

The Midtown Historic District of St. Louis was placed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational properti ...

United States Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the ma ...

in 1979.

Architecture

A remarkable collection of eclectic structures built between 1874 and 1930 range from Midtown's oldest building, a classic

Second Empire style Second Empire style, also known as the Napoleon III style, is a highly eclectic style of architecture and decorative arts, which uses elements of many different historical styles, and also made innovative use of modern materials, such as i ...

townhouse A townhouse, townhome, town house, or town home, is a type of terraced housing. A modern townhouse is often one with a small footprint on multiple floors. In a different British usage, the term originally referred to any type of city residence ...

at 3534 Washington Ave. built during the first phase of Midtown development to flamboyant early 20th century commercial buildings like the

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unit ...

Continental-Life Building, 3615 Olive Street and the "Siamese Byzantine" Fox Theatre, 527 N. Grand Blvd. Buildings in the district were designed by notable architects including

Henry Hobson Richardson Henry Hobson Richardson, FAIA (September 29, 1838 – April 27, 1886) was an American architect, best known for his work in a style that became known as Richardsonian Romanesque. Along with Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright, Richardson is one ...

Eames and Young Eames and Young was an American architecture firm based in St. Louis, Missouri, active nationally, and responsible for several buildings on the National Register of Historic Places. History The principals were Thomas Crane Young, FAIA and Will ...

, William B. Ittner, Preston J. Bradshaw,

C. Howard Crane Charles Howard Crane (August 13, 1885 – August 14, 1952) was an American architect who was primarily active in Detroit, Michigan. His designs include Detroit's Fox Theatre and Olympia Stadium, as well as LeVeque Tower in Columbus, Ohio, whic ...

Brad Cloepfil Brad Cloepfil (born 1956) is an American architect, educator and principal of Allied Works Architecture of Portland, Oregon and New York City. His first major project was an adaptive reuse of a Portland warehouse for the advertising agency Wieden ...

and

Tadao Ando is a Japanese autodidact architect whose approach to architecture and landscape was categorized by architectural historian Francesco Dal Co as "critical regionalism". He is the winner of the 1995 Pritzker Prize. Early life Ando was born a few m ...

. From a distance the Midtown skyline asserts a strong node like St. Louis's "second downtown". Most of Midtown's surviving historic structures have been restored and adapted for new uses.

Adaptive reuse of historic structures

A once dilapidated

movie palace A movie palace (or picture palace in the United Kingdom) is any of the large, elaborately decorated movie theaters built between the 1910s and the 1940s. The late 1920s saw the peak of the movie palace, with hundreds opening every year between 192 ...

Powell Hall Powell Hall (formerly known as the St. Louis Theater and Powell Symphony Hall) is the home of the St. Louis Symphony. It was named after Walter S. Powell, a local St. Louis businessman, whose widow donated $1 million towards the purchase and use ...

, 718 N. Grand Blvd. is the sumptuous, Neo-classical acoustically vibrant home of the

St. Louis Symphony The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra based in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1880 by Joseph Otten as the St. Louis Choral Society, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) is the second-oldest professional symphony or ...

and another is a thriving live performance venue, (the Fox Theatre). Buildings designed for worship are performing arts centers ( Sheldon Concert Hall and the Grandel Theatre). The Continental-Life Building and the University Club Building that originally housed offices are now apartment buildings. Single family residences have been converted into elegant professional offices (City House in Grand Center, 3534 Washington Ave. and the Lionberger House, 3630 Grandel Square). Former clubhouse buildings serve as art centers: The St. Louis Club Building, 3663 Lindell Blvd., is now the Saint Louis University Museum of Art and The Knights of Columbus Building, 3547 Olive Street, is the Centene Center for the Arts, housing the St. Louis Arts and Education Council and numerous arts agencies.

New construction

As Midtown revived, new art museums including the

Pulitzer Arts Foundation Pulitzer Arts Foundation is an art museum in St. Louis, Missouri, that presents special exhibitions and public programs. Known informally as the Pulitzer, the museum is located at 3716 Washington Boulevard in the Grand Center Arts District. The ...

and the Contemporary Art Museum and were built in 2001 and 2003, respectively, and the 1998 Dana Brown Communications Center (home of

KETC KETC, virtual channel 9 (UHF digital channel 23), is a PBS member television station licensed to St. Louis, Missouri, United States. The station is owned by St. Louis Regional Public Media. KETC's studios are located at the Dana Brown Commu ...

) has become a focal point for public broadcasting and new media.

City Foundry

City Foundry is a $220 million, 15-acre project that was undertaken by the Lawrence Group and CEO Steve Smith, who sought to create a new recreational and business complex in the center of Midtown, St. Louis. The idea for this new hub came about when Smith visited the Ponce City Market and

Krog Street Market Krog Street Market is a mixed-use development in Atlanta, located along the BeltLine trail at Edgewood Avenue in Inman Park Inman Park is an intown neighborhood on the east side of Atlanta, Georgia, and its first planned suburb. It was named ...

, two

mixed-use development Mixed-use is a kind of urban development, urban design, urban planning and/or a zoning type that blends multiple uses, such as residential, commercial, cultural, institutional, or entertainment, into one space, where those functions are to ...

buildings in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, and was inspired to bring the same idea back to part of St. Louis. The project is located in the heart of Midtown St. Louis, Missouri, with the goal of promoting

economic development In the economics study of the public sector, economic and social development is the process by which the economic well-being and quality of life of a nation, region, local community, or an individual are improved according to targeted goals and ...

within the

shrinking city Shrinking cities or urban depopulation are dense cities that have experienced a notable population loss. Emigration (migration from a place) is a common reason for city shrinkage. Since the infrastructure of such cities was built to support a l ...

. Specifically, the project is using infill development to turn the former Century Electric Company, one of the top 3 manufacturers in the city 100 years ago which closed in 2007, into a recreational and business complex containing a food hall, public market, and retail businesses. By using a biophilic design, creating a pedestrian-only walkway, and connecting the recreational and business complex to the Brickline Greenway, the hub attempts to foster greater

social connection Social connection is the experience of feeling close and connected to others. It involves feeling loved, cared for, and valued, and forms the basis of interpersonal relationships."Connection is the energy that exists between people when they feel ...

and act as a destination spot within the city, bringing the community and visitors together to foster a greater sense of belonging. The project was broken into four different phases. The first phase focused on the renovation of the foundry and the creation of the food hall and a 500-car parking garage. The second phase focused on the creation of a 24-story apartment building that targeted individuals from different universities in the city. The third and fourth phases focused on building two multi-story office buildings, commercial space, and additional parking avenues. Funding for this project came from tax incentives as well as private companies, two of which include Bull Moose Industries located in Chesterfield, Missouri, and CapStone Holdings located in Bonita Springs, Florida. Although the recreational and business complex was scheduled to open in the spring of 2020, there was a delayed opening due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Food Hall opened to the public in August 2021.

History

The only

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...

battle in St.Louis, the Camp Jackson Affair, took place on May 10, 1861, when Union military forces clashed with civilians after capturing the Confederate

Missouri Volunteer Militia The Missouri Volunteer Militia (MVM) was the state militia organization of Missouri, before the formation of the Missouri State Guard in the American Civil War. Prior to the Civil War, Missouri had an informal state militia that could be called up ...

commanded by General

Daniel M. Frost Daniel Marsh Frost (August 9, 1823 – October 29, 1900) was a former United States Army officer who became a brigadier general in the Missouri Volunteer Militia (MVM) and the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. Among the ha ...

. The Militia had been dispatched to St. Louis by Missouri Governor

Claiborne Fox Jackson Claiborne Fox Jackson (April 4, 1806 – December 6, 1862) was an American politician of the Democratic Party in Missouri. He was elected as the 15th Governor of Missouri, serving from January 3, 1861, until July 31, 1861, when he was for ...

to seize the St. Louis Arsenal, and secure 40,000 rifles and muskets for the Confederacy. It camped outside St. Louis at Lindell's Grove which was renamed "Camp Jackson" by the militiamen. The site of Camp Jackson is on the campus of

commemorated by a historical marker near the university's Busch Student Center. United States ( Union) Army Captain, later General,

Nathaniel Lyon Nathaniel Lyon (July 14, 1818 – August 10, 1861) was the first Union general to be killed in the American Civil War. He is noted for his actions in Missouri in 1861, at the beginning of the conflict, to forestall secret secessionist plans of th ...

marched from the Arsenal on the St. Louis riverfront to the rural site of Camp Jackson with a mixed force of 6,000 Regular Army troops and Home Guard volunteers. Frost surrendered to Lyon without a fight. However, after capturing Camp Jackson, Union Forces clashed with civilian bystanders resulting in the deaths of at least 28 people including Captain Constantin Blandowski, the first Union officer killed in the Civil War. Residential and commercial development of Midtown followed the Civil War as St. Louis expanded west in the 1870s. By the 1920s Midtown was a bustling district akin to New York City's

Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...

. Midtown deteriorated rapidly after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. However, in the 1970s, Father Paul C. Reinert, President of

inspired the

urban renewal Urban renewal (also called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address urban decay in cities. Urban renewal involves the clearing out of blighte ...

effort to rehabilitate the neighborhood and make use of its surviving buildings that continues in the Twenty-First Century.

Demographics

In 2020 Midtown's racial makeup was 47.7% White, 34.7% Black, 0.2% American Indian, 9.7% Asian, 4.1% Two or More Races, and 3.6% Some Other Race. 3.9% of the people were of Hispanic or Latino origin.

Gallery

References

External links

* * {{coord, 38.6356, -90.2287, dim:2000_region:US-MO, display=title Neighborhoods in St. Louis