We walked here from our hotel. This place has some new sculptures since I last went here a while…read moreback. It is a great place for kids to play in the daytime or for us to walk our dog. This place is well maintained and has been a wonderful addition to the downtown area.

Easy to find. Street parking. Is it a splash pad or yoga space. It's both. So many different art…read morepieces to see and witness. It's tucked in the heart of downtown.

Pierre Martin/Nicholas Boisrnenue House, East Carondelet, IL…read more I was allowed access to the inside the Martin-Boismenue House on October 10, 2015 for a photo-shoot. The house is now owned by the State of Illinois' Historic Preservation Agency. The Martin-Boismenue House used to hold two annual open-houses where the public was invited to view the interior of this late 18th century homestead and to interact with costumed interpreters to learn about French Colonial America. Traditionally these open houses were held during the Fete du Bons Vieux Temps in February and the St. Nicholas Tradition event in December, but they have not been held for over 10 years. The Pierre Martin Family. The Martin family was an old and large French Canadian family. Pierre Martin was born in La Rivenue Parish, Quebec, ca. 1745. He had arrived in the Illinois Country and was living in the village of Cahokia by 1770, the year he married Marie St. Yves. Pierre at age 42. He was listed in the 1787 census as the male head of a household living in Cahokia with two children. Pierre Martin was a Revolutionary War veteran. In the 1790 census, Pierre is listed as head of the household in the village of Prairie du Pont (East Carondelet), Illinois. He apparently acquired the property in this year as an improvement claim which require that he farm the land and built a house. It is therefore assumed that the Martini Boismenue House was constructed in 1790. In 1794, his Prairie du Pont property is described as consisting of a house, barn lot, garden, and other small outbuildings. The Martin-Boismenue House is a surviving example of the French Creole poteaux-sur-solle (post-on-sill) construction and one of the oldest structures of its kind in Illinois. This type of construction utilized upright hewn logs that were seated on a horizontal log sill and the spaces between the logs were filled with pierrotage chinking of mortar and rubble. The original building measures 20 x 35 ft and consisted of two rooms separated by a receiving hall and a one room or half basement with a separate rear entrance. The larger first floor room was the parlor, or salle, and was a multi-purpose living area. The smaller first floor room was the sleeping room, or chambre, and was a more private area. Limestone fireplaces were located at each end of the house including one in the half basement. There is a large attic which runs the entire length of the house. The house contained a stone cooking fireplace situated in a half basement, or souterrain, a rarity among similar structures that may reflect the prosperity of the owners. The basement likely functioned as a work space and living quarters as well. The original house is approximately 80% intact. A common feature of Creole architecture are the broad open porches, known as galeries, located on the front and back of the house. The galeries offered additional living space in fair weather as well as to keep the sun and rain off the whitewashed walls. At the end of the 18th century, the majority of European settlement in the middle Mississippi River Valley was confined to a sixty-mile strip between Cahokia and Kaskaskia (the Ste. Genevieve area). This fertile river bottomland, now known as the American Bottom, was the breadbasket for the Louisiana Territory. The principal crop grown was wheat but other commodities included corn, pumpkins, oats, barley, flax, cotton, and tobacco. Farmers in Pierre Martin's era would use a common field called the le grand champ. Martin would cultivate and harvest his crops with the help of his family, his one or two slaves, and hired day laborers. Once harvested, Martin would have transported his crops south to Kaskaskia where it would then be shipped to New Orleans. In 1806, Pierre Martin put up the two lots with a house and barn in Prairie du Pont and two common field tracts as collateral for a loan to Jean Francois Perrey. In the same year, his wife died, and his death at age 62 followed the next year. With Martin's debt unpaid, the probates indicate that Perrey was compensated out of the estate sale. The barn and lot were sold for $13. 00 and the house - described as "avec souterraint" (finished basement) - was sold for $96.00 to Baptiste Gendron. Throughout the early 19th century, several owners are indicated and during the late 19th century into the early 20th century it was owned by members of the Boismenue family. The Boismenue family of French Canadian descent appear in the records at Cahokia in the 18th century. It was not until 1980, when the Martin/Boismenue House was destined for demolition, that it became evident that the building was of vertical log construction. When workmen began to strip off the modern siding from the front of the structure, the distinctive vertical log timbers of the original building were exposed (Figure 5). Within 24 hours, a local group of citizens was organized with the intention of saving the structure for its historical significance.

We are happy to have the chance to visit this historical site.It was an informative free tour and…read morethe movie is very interesting .This place has a lot of artifacts,his uniform is one of them and a tour to the house where he spent a bit of time with his family is a site to see.A nice place you visit specially if you have a family member serving in Armed Forces or just wanting to know history about the 18th President of USA.

It truly is a nice and informative place, I can tell you that. Everything is organized well and…read moreit's a humble gem in St. Louis. Or-unless you are a showbiz about U.S. Presidents, I suppose. Other than that, it's a nice place to go to, learn about some of America's history. The best part? Totally free. For the low, low price of $0.00, you can have acess to informative and true history about the U.S. (Or Ulysses S. Grant). The place is also pretty clean, which is a nice addition. It gets pretty busy in the mornings, but it dies down after. I do reccomend going here. Go STL. Whoo.

Attended the Mayor's Ball at City Hall and it really is the best venue for it! What better place to…read morehave the Mayor's Ball than the home of the Mayor! Just a great party in an Historical location!

City hall was designed & built from 1891 until 1898 by architects Eckel & Mann. Construction began…read morein 1891 and completed in 1898. Its stylistic characteristics evoke the French Renaissance Hôtel de Ville, Paris, with an elaborate interior decorated with marble and gold trim. The building features a striking foundation of Missouri pink granite on the lower levels, complemented by upper levels of sandstone & brick, all capped with a roof of burgundy-red clay tiles. City Hall's rotunda, which is 4 stories high, showcases floors of white Italian marble and walls clad in a mix of white marble, light &dark Tennessee marble, and black Glen Falls marble.

An underground station on the Blue Line of the Saint Louis Metrolink, Skinker is located at the…read morenorthwest corner of Forest Park. If you're coming from the Shrewsbury end of the Blue Line, this is a convenient stop for accessing Delmar Loop without going to Forest Park station and waiting for a Red Line train. It's just a few blocks. Skinker takes its name from Skinker Boulevard which in turn is named for Adam L. Skinker, a prominent early 20th-century Saint Louis civic figure and real‑estate developer. He was involved in subdivision development and land assembly on the western edge of the city at a time when Saint Louis was expanding toward Forest Park and the county line. The station is located between Forest Park-DeBaliviere (inbound) and University City-Big Bend (outbound). The trains run down the center of the station, which means the doors will open on the right side of the train. There is a mezzanine level with a bridge inside the station for transferring from one side to the other. The station is located in the Skinker Tunnel which itself is well below the ground with both stairs and elevator to reach the surface level. Beyond the station in both directions, the train returns to teh surface. The station seemed decently lit this afternoon. There are ticket vending kiosks and while no one was checking tickets today, I'm sure that they do that occasionally. Don't get caught! [Review 418 of 2026 - 502 in Missouri - 25601 overall]

It is just an ordinary narrow box with dull advertising posters/boxes on grimy tiled walls. But the…read moreartwork at the west entrance does add some aesthetic value to this infrastructure. The tunnel bridge over the tracks serves as a pedestrian underpass that connects the university to the other side of the road, which is Very convenient. It is not the most decrepit or dirtiest station in STL but I've seen mold on the wall, especially on rainy days. I often couldn't refrain from wondering how deep these inhaled spores can reach in our trachea and bronchial tubes before being trapped in mucus though.

Well kept historic home in Waterloo before it was Waterloo!! Showing era correct trappings, fun…read moreplace at holidays. Bonus: Said to be haunted! Maybe a good boo and a history lesson!

Once again another place I discovered on the Waterloo Christmas walk. This was a stage coach stop…read moreback in the day. It was a general store, bar with a dance hall on the top floor. Bits and pieces of Waterloo history all in one building. Street parking but very friendly dosen.

If you know me, you know I'm fascinated by everyday historic landmarks. I prefer the places people…read moredon't always think about - like the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge. So, fun facts. Old Chain of Rocks Bridge is part of the even more historic Route 66. It also helps to connect Missouri and Illinois (and yes, you can walk it - or wheel it in my case). Built in 1929, the bridge features a 30-degree turn halfway across the mile-long bridge. While today this area is very passable by ships, in 1929 a "chain of rocks" (a 17-mile shoal) made passage difficult. Originally designed to go straight across, riverboat men protested because the bridge itself would have created an additional obstacle. Essentially, it had to "bend" for the sake of safe passage. The bridge cost twice its original estimate ($2.5 million), but it was built as a "destination" from the beginning. The Missouri side had a park; the Illinois side had 400 elm trees. There was even an amusement park. Also, during World War II the red sections were painted green so it would be less visible from air. The bridge closed in terms of official function in 1968 - a new Chain of Rocks Bridge opened in 1967 and includes Interstate 270. Old Chain of Rocks Bridge was nearly destroyed in 1967. For several years, that seemed likely. In 1980 (another fun fact), John Carpenter used the bridge in Escape From New York). Obviously, the bridge has been restored to some fame. It's now part of the Route 66 Bikeway (as of 1999), and in 2006 was added to the National Register of Historic Places. I'm considering a Route 66 Tenderness Tour (or at least part of the 2,000+ mile highway). This bridge may become part of that, so I'm thrilled I got the chance to check it out. The pathway for biking/wheeling is nicely done, easy to maneuver, and stunning in beauty (though it was an admittedly beautiful day when I was on the bridge). The bridge offers connections to the MCT Confluence Trail, Mississippi River Trail (Isn't it weird? I've been out of school 30+ years and I still sing the Mississippi song when I spell it), and the St. Louis Riverfront Trail. There's free parking on the Illinois side at the bridge entrance and also at North Riverfront Park. The Missouri side has a park with a pavilion, native habitats, an event lawn, and a gated parking lot (the event space opened in 2024). The bridge, no longer used by vehicles, is open daily for bikers/pedestrians (and wheelchairs).

This old bridge is an awesome piece of Americana history. It is about a 1 mile walk to get across…read morethe bridge. There are 2 castle looking buildings in the ole Mississippi that use to be the water source for the city of St Louis. I would recommend parking on the Missouri side as it has be recently redone. Nice parking lot with picnic tables and overhead protection from the sun. No running water but there are 2 porta potties under an awning. The Illinois side is not as pleasant.

Everyone should go to the O'Fallon Chamber of Commerce yearly gala. It was a blast, I got to try so…read moremuch local food and the place was beautifully decorated. I kicked butt at the roulette wheel too, haha!

I have been a member of several Chambers in the past, even leading one several years ago. The…read moreO'Fallon Chamber is such a great investment for your business and knows how to create events that truly showcase your business. It is a well run and efficient organization and they are good stewards of our financial investment. Besides general membership meetings there are several additional opportunities to promote your business like at the July 4th Firecracker Run and on their billboard.