A private place in St. Louis
I almost missed this little gem: Washington Terrace
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I went to a wedding in St. Louis a few weeks ago — one I did not want to miss. The bride’s parents are Dr. Paul and Katy Crapo. Paul was the head of the modern foreign language department at the University of Tennessee at Martin where my mother taught Portuguese and French. In addition they were both close friends of my parents who have now passed. Upon Paul’s retirement they moved to Athens, Georgia. Paul and Katy stay with me when they’re going to St. Louis and we’ve become good friends as well. Such wonderful people, I can understand why my parents loved them so much. Their daughter, Claire, was especially sweet to my mother. She would make a point of visiting her in the memory care facility when she came through Nashville. Now you know why I wanted to go to this wedding.
Forest Park, an unexpected detour
I knew my time was going to be limited in St. Louis so I figured I’d just wing it like my dad used to do on our family trips. One of those trips was actually to St. Louis. I remember going to the famous zoo, which is where the wedding was going to be.
The next morning I was hoping to spend some time exploring Forest Park but when I woke up, I was feeling sluggish. Maybe I had a little too much fun at the wedding. So I decided to bail on my plans, go get some coffee and head back to Nashville.
Forest Park is considered one of the nation’s greatest urban public parks. The park’s 1,300 acres feature beautiful landscapes sprinkled with forests, ecosystems, nature reserves, lakes and streams, as well as five of the region’s major cultural institutions and endless opportunities for recreation.
As Google Maps guided me to a Starbucks in the Forest Park neighborhood, I couldn’t stop admiring the architecture and the stately old homes and apartment buildings. I had to know more. I was intrigued.
While I was waiting for my coffee, I feverishly started Googling “Forest Park” to see what I could find online. I found information on a few neighborhood association websites that led me to some amazing turn-of-the-century homes with these magnificent gated entries. Then I saw this insane clock tower. This is not what I had even remotely planned but…
Jackpot! I’d found my hidden gem — Washington Terrace.
What’s a private place?
I drove over to the neighborhood and walked up to the clock tower where it clearly said No Trespassing. I hesitated. This clearly comes from the Puritanical side of the family because my Latin side said, “I don’t care.” Or is this my Irish side?
So my rule-following side (Puritan) said be careful and my rule-breaking side (Latin, Irish) said don’t get caught. And off I went.
I read on the marker at the entrance that Washington Terrace is a private place. What the heck is a private place? Basically a private place is what we now call gated communities.
This private place was built around the turn of the century in preparation for the Louisiana Purchase Exposition better known as the St. Louis World’s Fair that was held from Apr. 30 to Dec. 1, 1904. The World’s Fair was hosted by St. Louis to celebrate the centennial of the 1803 Louisiana Purchase.
A French Norman Clock Tower
About 50 of these private place enclaves once stood within the borders of the city of St. Louis. Most were designed by civil engineer Julius Pitzman between 1868 and 1905.
Pitzman laid out Washington Terrace with 50 lots and an imposing entry gate, a "French Norman Clock Tower" designed by Harvey Ellis and the architect George R. Mann. The styles of the mansions range from Italian Renaissance, Richardsonian Romanesque to Tudor.
Number 25 Washington Terrace, for instance, was the residence of Joseph W. Moon, of St. Louis's once-successful Moon Motor Car. Number 11 was the home of Julius Adler Baer, of Stix, Baer and Fuller.
And yes, I read about those businesses too. 🤦♀️
What is a clock tower?
Although clock towers are today mostly admired for their aesthetics, they once served an important purpose.
Before the middle of the twentieth century, most people did not have watches, and prior to the 18th century even home clocks were rare.
The first clocks did not have faces, but were solely striking clocks, which sounded bells to call the surrounding community to work or to prayer. They were therefore placed in towers so the bells would be audible for a long distance. Clock towers were placed near the centres of towns and were often the tallest structures there.
As clock towers became more common, the designers realized that a dial on the outside of the tower would allow the townspeople to read the time whenever they wanted.
What is a French Norman Clock Tower?
Your guess is as good as mine. If you know, please leave a comment or reply to the email. I couldn’t find a thing online.
The mansions on this street are so beautiful and unique. I can imagine how exciting it must have been to live here during the World’s Fair.
Transportation changes urban living
It’s true the homes are incredible here. However, I was astonished at how many of them looked like they could use a little TLC. I get it. Nashville has transitional neighborhoods as well.
This is what happened:
In the early 1900s, cars began to transform the way people lived. Families no longer needed to live close to the city in order to be able to get there easily. Instead, they could move out to the suburbs, where they could have larger houses and yards.
In addition, these houses required a lot of maintenance, and families often found it easier and more affordable to simply buy a new house than to renovate an old one. As a result, many of these mansions were left abandoned. And while they may be beautiful to look at, they are a reminder of a time when families were less dependent on cars.
If only I had the money. Sigh.
Unplanned discoveries are the best
I have always preferred to do the opposite of what’s trendy. Once everyone jumps on the band wagon, the allure diminishes for me. I love finding the hidden gems, going to unique and undiscovered places, randomly meeting interesting people and the surprise of just letting things happen. Walking through Washington Terrace on a gorgeous fall day wasn’t on my radar and it wasn’t planned but the experience to me was incredible. And now I get to share my adventure with you.
They are beautiful, aren’t they?
I've only been to St. Louis once and enjoyed the two days I was there. I'm sure there is so much we missed and I can't wait to go back again. I love "unplanned discoveries", not just in travel but in my reading too.