St Louis Metro - Endless Possibilities, Endless Dreams

Welcome to St Louis!!  I'm glad you're here!

Today, the actual City of St Louis has 79 distinct neighborhoods (see map) that are officially recognized.  Each with it's own "flavor" and attitude, many people chose where they want to live by the neighborhood first, then the homes in it.  Due to the number of them, I've put the links and information on St Louis's neighborhoods on a separate page for you to use as you explore St Louis.  For general information on the City, check out it's website.  Many areas of the city fall into Housing Conservation Districts that require building inspections and occupancy permits.  To find out if a home that you are interested in falls in that category, click here.

But the City is much much more than those 79 neighborhoods.  From it's inception in 1764 as a fur trading post, the City of St Louis has had a rich history that has included a World's Fair in 1904.  Today, the City of St Louis boasts world-class educational institutions, some of the top hospitals in the US, leading bio-tech industries and research, and major automobile plants, along with being a leader in the aerospace industry.

The City of St Louis has come a long way from the small village established by Pierre LaClede Liguest and August Chouteau.  The starting point for Lewis and Clark's exploration of the West, it's been a jumping off point ever since for those headed to the "Far West" for adventure, fame and wealth.  Yet St Louis has had plenty of it's own fame over the years 

 
• the first Olympics to be held in the US in 1904
 
• the first Cathedral West of the Mississippi still stands today in the shadow of the Arch
 
• The St Louis Merchants Exchange is the oldest grain exchange in the US
 
• The first publicly funded kindergarten in the US was started here by Susan Blow in 1873
 
• St Louis University was the first university founded West of the Mississippi in 1818
 
• The Old Courthouse was the first Cast-Iron Dome to be built
 
• The Dred Scott slavery trial was held in St Louis
 
• The Ead's Bridge was the first arched steel truss bridge in the world (built in 1874)
 
• The Bird Cage at the St Louis Zoo (built for the 1904 World's Fair in St Louis) was the first open enclosure for zoo animals in the world plus it allows humans to walk through the cage
 
• The world's first climate-controlled dome was the Climatron at the Missouri Botanical Gardens
 
• Charles Lindbergh's famous flight around the world was considered a St Louis triumph

 

While it's history is important, St Louis is a forward thinking city.  Highly networked, it is home to Fortune 500 companies, high-tech start-ups and to solid family businesses.  But more than a center of commerce and business, it's a city that's about people.  As a result, St Louis abounds in educational facilities, museums, a world-class zoo, theaters (including the Fabulous Fox Theater), restaurants, parks, sporting events and tourist attractions for it's residents and tourists.  If you would like to know more about St Louis's History and traditions, check out the Missouri Historical Society.

 

 St Louis County 

 Referred to as "The Great Divorce", in 1876, the City of St Louis withdrew from St Louis County, because the City felt that the County would be a money drain against the City's finances. The end result was a City that was land and river locked and could not grow, while the County hasn't stopped growing. The City of Clayton (in the County) became a second business and financial district for the area and over 90 municipalities were incorporated (with St Louis County still handling the unincorporated areas). Note: In recent years, some of those municipalities have chosen to dis-incorporate themselves due to their size and budget constraints bringing us down to 88. Today the City of Clayton houses the primary government centers for the County, but branches have been established in each of the geographic sections of the County (West, South, North and Central). Besides the County government, there are over 60 municipal police departments, 23 fire protection districts and 20 municipal fire departments located in St Louis County.  While each municipality provides some services to it's population (some of which are encompassed within a City Block, while others have 50,000 residents), the County provides an excellent Library Services, Parks and Recreation Department, Community Colleges, and much more.  One of the outstanding items of interest is that the County Residents agreed in 1972, to establish a special Metropolitan Zoological Park and Museum District (known locally as the Zoo Museum District) taxing district which provides funds to help ensure that the Art Museum, Science Center, Botanical Garden, History Museum and Zoo which are located in the City of St Louis receive taxes from both City and County residents to help support them.  As a result, unlike many other cultural institutions throughout the US, our Museums and Zoos are either free or have very nominal admission costs for both County and City residents.