June 11

St. Louis, MO

Formally known as the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, the Gateway Arch National Park consists of the Gateway Arch and St. Louis’ Old Courthouse.  The National Park Service website recommended purchasing tickets in advance due to estimated large crowds at this time of year.

We a choice of buying just a ticket for the tram ride to the top or a combo tickets for the tram & Cruise on a riverboat.  We opted to go with just the tram (regular price $13 and only $10 with our Senior America the Beautiful pass).  We decided to wait and see how the day unfolded to decide to take a cruise because we didn’t know how long much time we would want to spend on other things.

Currently the historic Old Courthouse (located .25 miles from the Arch) serves as the welcome center for the park.  (The grand opening for a newly constructed visitor center at the base of the Arch will be held on July 3).

There is quite a bit of construction happening in the surrounding area of the Arch so we had difficulty finding the parking lot I had read about down by the levee.  The GPS instructed us to turn into streets that were closed off so we ended up going old school and used a paper map.  Worked like a charm.

After paying the $6 fee for all day parking we found a spot right near the riverboat with easy access to the park grounds via the Grand Staircase.

Prior to exploring the visitor center we walked a few blocks to the St. Louis Fed building where the Economy Museum is housed. 

There is no entrance fee but visitors must show a photo ID and go through airport style security when entering the building.

After posing in front of a million dollar cube we watched a short welcome video narrated by St. Louis Fed President James Bullard, who describes the unique economic and cultural characteristics of the seven-state region covered by the Eight Federal Reserve District.

The exhibits included showing the impact to the economy by our spending, saving and investing, how markets make the world go ‘round and how actions taken by governments across the planet affect all of us.

 

When we passed through the gift shop we picked up our free shredded money souvenir.

 

Before taking a ranger guided tour of the Old Courthouse we stopped in at the gift shop so I could stamp my passport. 

The gift shop has the usual assortment of souvenirs.

On the bottom of the base of a small replica of the arch made from the Arch Cable is a sticker with some basic facts.

Height  630 feet                       Width-same as height                        Built  2/12/63 - 10/28/65
Weight  17,246 tons                  Projected life-1,000 years                 Stairs  1,076
Sway  18" in a 150 mph wind                   Cost $13 million      Outer Skin-stainless steel

The Old Courthouse is listed in the National Park Service’s National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom that recognizes sites, programs and facilities with associations to the Underground Railroad.

 

 

The Courthouse is linked as a property associated with legal challenges to slavery.  With hundreds of suits for freedom, one gained notoriety in 1847 when Dred Scott and his wife Harriet sued for their freedom. 

When the first case was heard, Dred Scott was around 50 years old.  Born in Virginia, he has spent his entire life as a slave.  After the family who owned him moved to St. Louis and fell on hard times, they sold Dred to Dr. John Emerson, a military surgeon.  Dred accompanied his new master to posts in Illinois and the Wisconsin Territory, where slavery had been prohibited by the Missouri Compromise of 1820.

Dred sued for his freedom on the grounds that he had once lived in a free territory.  In the past, Missouri courts supported the doctrine of “once free, always free.” 

The Supreme Court decision, after many appeals, stated that slaves were property with no right to sue.

Our tour included entry into the actual courtroom where the Dred Scott case was heard.

The Museum of Westward Expansion has exhibits including dioramas of scenes related to the experiences of those who were part of the westward expansion including Lewis and Clark. 

This picture was taken across the street from the arch on the steps of the Old Courthouse.  It appears small from this viewpoint.

There was no line as we entered the visitor center at the base of the arch and proceeded through security.

The theater in the Arch visitor center has a showing of the film, Monument to the Dream that runs approximately 35 minutes.  I highly recommend seeing the film prior to riding the tram to the top of the arch to get a better perspective of the architecture. 

The film traces the adventures of the Arch’s evolution, from the early concepts to the fabrication of its stainless steel sections, and the triumphant placement of its final section in the fall of 1965.

Through the words of the master architect Eero Saarinen, the film reveals the innovative structural techniques and the brilliant design presenting one of this century’s greatest civil engineering achievements. 

Our ride to the top of the Arch began by presenting our tickets and receiving a card with our assigned tram car. 

There was a short video projected on two walls that played while we waited for our number to be called. 

When it was our turn we walked down a flight of stairs and lined up in front of our assigned car. 

While we waited for the tram to arrive we watched projections on the doors showing heights of different structures compared to the arch.

When the doors to the tram opened we were instructed to allow the exiting visitors to depart before entering the car. 

Basic facts I learned: Each of the 16 tram cars holds five seated persons.  Each capsule rotates approximately 155 degrees during the trip to the top. 

There are small windows giving a view of the Arch interior during the 4 minute journey to the top.

Visitors can stay as long as they like at the top in the observation area which features 16 windows looking east over the Mississippi River and the Illinois communities and countryside and 16 windows looking west over the city of St. Louis. 

 

 

 

 

After taking many pictures we lined up for the return trip down.

 

 

We ended our tour of the visitor center by browsing in the gift shop.

 

 

Replica of the final piece that connected the two sides of the arch 

It was very hot as we made our way back to the parking lot.  We were glad we had put our sunshield up making the interior of our truck just bearable.

We enjoyed our time at the Arch and feel so blessed that we are living a lifestyle that allows us to explore, learn about and experience our wonderful country.