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Gateway Arch National Park

Gateway Arch National Park is an American national park located in St. Louis, Missouri, near the starting point of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Gateway Arch National Park
The Gateway Arch serves as the attraction's centerpiece.
LocationSt. Louis, Missouri, United States
Coordinates38°37′29″N 90°11′06″W / 38.62460°N 90.18497°W / 38.62460; -90.18497
Area90.9 acres (36.8 ha)
EstablishedFebruary 22, 2018; 5 years ago (February 22, 2018)
Visitors2,055,309 (in 2019)[1]
Governing bodyNational Park Service
WebsiteGateway Arch National Park
Gateway Arch National Park
LocationMississippi River between Washington and Poplar Sts., St. Louis, Missouri
Area90.9 acres (36.8 ha)
Built1831–34 Old Cathedral
1839–64 Old Courthouse
1962–65 Gateway Arch
NRHP reference No.66000941[2]
Added to NRHPOctober 15, 1966

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 m2) 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).[3] 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.[4]

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 edit

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 a Greenway 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 edit

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 edit

 
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.[5]

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.[6]

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.[7] 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.[8] 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.[9]

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.[10] 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.[11]

1940s edit

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.[12]

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 edit

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 edit

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 edit

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.[13] 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[14]

2010s edit

Renovations edit

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.[15] 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.[16][17] The project, originally planned for completion in 2015 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the opening of the arch,[18] was completed in 2018.[19] It includes:[20]

  • 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.[21] 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.[22]

Redesignation edit

Gateway Arch National Park Designation Act
 
Long titleAn Act to redesignate the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial in the State of Missouri as the “Gateway Arch National Park”.
Enacted bythe 115th United States Congress
EffectiveFebruary 22, 2018
Citations
Public lawPub. L.Tooltip Public Law (United States) 115–128 (text) (PDF)
Statutes at Large132 Stat. 328
Codification
Titles amendedTitle 16—Conservation
U.S.C. sections created16 U.S.C. § 450jj-10
Legislative history

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).[23]

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.[24]

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.[25]

The new designation has been seen as an attempt to increase tourism in St. Louis.[26] The name has been criticized as inappropriate by some visitors.[27]

Chouteau Greenway edit

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.[28][29]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Annual Visitation Report by Years: 2009 to 2019". nps.gov. National Park Service. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  2. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  3. ^ "Should Gateway Arch Be a National Park?". Outside Magazine. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
  4. ^ "What's In A Name: Gateway Arch National Park". www.nationalparkstraveler.org. Retrieved November 27, 2023.
  5. ^ "Luther Ely Smith: Founder of a Memorial" (PDF). The Museum Gazette. National Park Service. (PDF) from the original on February 16, 2008. Retrieved January 11, 2008.
  6. ^ O’Neil, Tim (December 13, 2012). "With cornice repairs complete, scaffold around St. Louis' Old Courthouse coming down". St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
  7. ^ "Editorial". Jefferson City Daily Capital News. June 24, 1939.[full citation needed]
  8. ^ "St. Louis River Front Memorial Approved by Voters". The Southeast Missourian. September 11, 1935. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  9. ^ "Fraudulent Election Provides Funds to Create Arch Grounds". St. Louis Post Dispatch. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  10. ^ "St. Louis Site Obtained for Jefferson Memorial". The Hammond Times. Vol. 34, no. 5. United Press. June 22, 1939. p. 15 – via Newspaper Archive.
  11. ^ "225,00 See Roosevelt in St. Louis". Moberly Monitor-Index. Associated Press. October 14, 1936.[full citation needed]
  12. ^ . genealogyinstlouis.accessgenealogy.com. Archived from the original on April 7, 2008. Retrieved January 11, 2008.
  13. ^ Salter, Jim (August 29, 2007). . Southeast Missourian. Archived from the original on June 28, 2018. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
  14. ^ . St. Louis Post Dispatch. August 29, 2007. Archived from the original on January 31, 2008.
  15. ^ Bomar, Mary A. (August 2007). "Summary of Park Centennial Strategies" (PDF). National Park Service. (PDF) from the original on September 11, 2007. Retrieved February 15, 2008.
  16. ^ . Archived from the original on September 3, 2011. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
  17. ^ . Archived from the original on November 30, 2012.
  18. ^ Barr, Diana (September 15, 2015). "Gateway Arch grounds renovations fall further behind schedule". St. Louis Business Journal. Retrieved June 22, 2017.
  19. ^ "Gateway Arch museum delayed until summer 2018". KMOV.com. June 21, 2017. Retrieved June 24, 2017.
  20. ^ "New York firm MVVA wins Arch design competition | Metro". stltoday.com. September 21, 2010. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
  21. ^ Taketa, Kristen. "Timber! Most of St. Louis' 15,000 ash trees coming down to stop bug invasion". Retrieved August 26, 2016.
  22. ^ Moffitt, Kelly. "Planners hit fundraising goal for Arch grounds renovation". Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  23. ^ "Gateway Arch National Park Designation Act (2018 - S. 1438)". GovTrack.us. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  24. ^ 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.
  25. ^ "President Donald J. Trump Signs S. 1438 into Law". whitehouse.gov – via National Archives.
  26. ^ McCracken, Kate (December 18, 2022). "Gateway Arch gains national park status, revitalizes landmark". Webster Journal. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  27. ^ Pennington, Emily (December 17, 2021). "Should Gateway Arch Be a National Park?". Outside Online. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  28. ^ "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.
  29. ^ "Chouteau Greenway Master Plan". Great Rivers Greenway. Retrieved August 3, 2019.
  • National Register of Historic Places Nomination Forms
    • Richard I. Ortega (March 3, 1976). "National Register of Historic Places Places Inventory – Nomination Form: Jefferson National Expansion Memorial" (PDF). National Park Service. (PDF) from the original on January 27, 2016. Retrieved January 19, 2016. Accompanying three photos from c. 1942 and 1975.
    • (PDF). Missouri Department of Natural Resources. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 25, 2021. Retrieved May 30, 2008.

External links edit

Teacher resources edit

  • The Old Courthouse lesson plan
  • The Mathematics and Architecture of the St. Louis Arch, William V. Thayer
  • Owner's Manual for the Gateway Arch, William V. Thayer


gateway, arch, national, park, american, national, park, located, louis, missouri, near, starting, point, lewis, clark, expedition, gateway, arch, serves, attraction, centerpiece, locationst, louis, missouri, united, statescoordinates38, 62460, 18497, 62460, 1. Gateway Arch National Park is an American national park located in St Louis Missouri near the starting point of the Lewis and Clark Expedition Gateway Arch National ParkThe Gateway Arch serves as the attraction s centerpiece LocationSt Louis Missouri United StatesCoordinates38 37 29 N 90 11 06 W 38 62460 N 90 18497 W 38 62460 90 18497Area90 9 acres 36 8 ha EstablishedFebruary 22 2018 5 years ago February 22 2018 Visitors2 055 309 in 2019 1 Governing bodyNational Park ServiceWebsiteGateway Arch National ParkGateway Arch National ParkU S National Register of Historic PlacesU S Historic districtShow map of St LouisShow map of MissouriShow map of the United StatesLocationMississippi River between Washington and Poplar Sts St Louis MissouriArea90 9 acres 36 8 ha Built1831 34 Old Cathedral1839 64 Old Courthouse1962 65 Gateway ArchNRHP reference No 66000941 2 Added to NRHPOctober 15 1966In its initial form as a national memorial it was established in 1935 to commemorate the Louisiana Purchase and subsequent westward movement of American explorers and pioneers the first civil government west of the Mississippi River and the debate over slavery raised by the Dred Scott case 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 m2 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 3 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 4 Contents 1 Components 1 1 The Gateway Arch 1 2 Old Courthouse 1 3 Museum at the Gateway Arch 2 History 2 1 1930s 2 2 1940s 2 3 1950s 2 4 1960s 2 5 1980s 2 6 1990s 2 7 2000s 2 8 2010s 2 8 1 Renovations 2 8 2 Redesignation 3 Chouteau Greenway 4 See also 5 References 6 External links 6 1 Teacher resourcesComponents editThe Gateway Arch edit Main article Gateway Arch 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 edit Main article Old Courthouse St Louis 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 a Greenway 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 edit 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 edit1930s edit nbsp The Old Courthouse from the observation area at the top of the archThe 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 5 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 The Battle of St Louis the only battle west of the Mississippi River in the American Revolutionary War The first capital of Upper Louisiana for the United States the Louisiana Purchase north of the 33rd parallel that was the original Louisiana Territory in 1803 The Three Flags Day ceremony in 1804 in which Spain formally turned over Louisiana to France less than 24 hours before France then officially turned it over to the United States This technically completed the Louisiana Purchase and also cleared the way for Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to legally begin their exploration of the continental west which Spain had prohibited 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 6 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 7 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 8 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 9 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 10 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 11 1940s edit 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 12 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 edit 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 edit 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 edit 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 nbsp The Missouri state quarter depicting the Gateway Arch and the Lewis and Clark ExpeditionThe 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 13 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 14 2010s edit Renovations edit 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 15 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 16 17 The project originally planned for completion in 2015 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the opening of the arch 18 was completed in 2018 19 It includes 20 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 21 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 22 Redesignation edit Gateway Arch National Park Designation Act nbsp Long titleAn Act to redesignate the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial in the State of Missouri as the Gateway Arch National Park Enacted bythe 115th United States CongressEffectiveFebruary 22 2018CitationsPublic lawPub L Tooltip Public Law United States 115 128 text PDF Statutes at Large132 Stat 328CodificationTitles amendedTitle 16 ConservationU S C sections created16 U S C 450jj 10Legislative historyIntroduced in the Senate as S 1438 by Roy Blunt R MO on June 26 2017Committee consideration by Senate Energy and Natural ResourcesPassed the Senate on December 21 2017 voice vote Passed the House on February 7 2018 voice vote Signed into law by President Donald Trump on February 22 2018On 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 23 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 24 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 25 The new designation has been seen as an attempt to increase tourism in St Louis 26 The name has been criticized as inappropriate by some visitors 27 Chouteau Greenway editThe 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 28 29 See also editList of national parks of the United StatesReferences edit Annual Visitation Report by Years 2009 to 2019 nps gov National Park Service Retrieved August 16 2020 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 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 Richard I Ortega March 3 1976 National Register of Historic Places Places Inventory Nomination Form Jefferson National Expansion Memorial PDF National Park Service Archived PDF from the original on January 27 2016 Retrieved January 19 2016 Accompanying three photos from c 1942 and 1975 Jefferson National Expansion Memorial PDF Missouri Department of Natural Resources Archived from the original PDF on February 25 2021 Retrieved May 30 2008 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gateway Arch National Park Official website National Park Service Dred Scott case suffragette Virginia Minor case Artistic photos and renderings State Historical Society of Missouri Timeline of current arch grounds project August 2013 to November 2016 St Louis Post Dispatch Historic American Engineering Record HAER No MO 40 Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Arch Mississippi River between Washington amp Poplar Streets St Louis Independent City MO 34 photos 8 color transparencies 3 photo caption pagesTeacher resources edit The Old Courthouse lesson plan The Mathematics and Architecture of the St Louis Arch William V Thayer Owner s Manual for the Gateway Arch William V Thayer Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Gateway Arch National Park amp oldid 1198783198, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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