Downtown St. Louis Missouri

We had enough energy and daylight to take drive to downtown St. Louis Missouri even though our drive from Independence to St. Louis was not a short one (237 miles).

Downtown St. Louis Missouri

I was so excited to get my first ever glimpse of the famous Gateway Arch in downtown St. Louis Missouri! And I was awe struck. What an engineering marvel. You can see the arch from almost everywhere downtown. It is spectacular.

The central focus of downtown is The Arch, the Old Courthouse and Busch Stadium. It was beautiful to see the old and the modern blended into one glorious area.

The Old Courthouse

Downtown St. Louis Missouri is also home to the historic Old Courthouse opened on February 22, 1845. During the time of the great westward migrations the courthouse was a gathering place. St. Louis served as a major outfitter for pioneers going to the Pacific Coast during the 19th Century. Those pioneers would gather in and around the courthouse to prepare for their long overland journeys. Throughout this period the St. Louis Courthouse served as the gateway city’s center for many public gatherings and celebrations. It also provided a forum where citizens voiced and debated important local and national issues.

The history of the Old Courthouse includes many important associations with the subject of slavery in St. Louis. Though slaves were sometimes sold from the steps of this building, the circumstances around these events are often misunderstood. Slave auctions from the Old Courthouse were usually related to the settlement of estates in the probate courts. These slave sales were few in number, compared to the larger number of commercial auctions and private sales that took place throughout the city.

Just as slaves were sometimes sold at the Old Courthouse, they could also gain their freedom there. In 1859, St. Louis resident Ulysses S. Grant came to the courthouse to free his own slave. Numerous other slaves were emancipated at the courthouse by their owners. Once free, blacks received their required licenses in this building so that they could reside in the county at a time when restrictive “Black Codes” were enforced.

The courts were another avenue for slaves to gain freedom. Over 200 slaves sued their owners for freedom at the Old Courthouse including Dred and Harriet Scot.

Busch Stadium

Another highlight of downtown St. Louis Missouri is Busch Stadium. On April 10, 2006, the St. Louis Cardinals opened their new 46,000 seat retro-style downtown ballpark. And to mark this special occasion they enjoyed a 6-4 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. The Cardinals also became the first team in almost 100 years to win a World Series Championship in the inaugural season of a new ballpark. The new Busch Stadium hosted the 80th MLB All-Star Game, in July 2009.

Busch Stadium, also referred to informally as “New Busch Stadium” or “Busch Stadium III”, is located in downtown St. Louis Missouri, and is the home of the St. Louis Cardinals, the city’s Major League Baseball franchise. The stadium has a seating capacity of 44,494, and contains 3,706 club seats and 61 luxury suites.

The Gateway Arch downtown St. Louis

The Gateway Arch is one of the most spectacular man made attractions that we have ever seen! It soars 630 feet above the ground and can be seen for miles. It was erected in the mid 1960s and is so amazing that we planned to spend a day exploring the arch with a trip to the top. So in a couple of days I will have a dedicated post to tell you all about this incredible and beautiful landmark.