[STLgasm]

Today's high was 73 degrees in St. Louis-- a record high for St. Louis in January! I spent the afternoon cruising along Gravois Avenue, which slices through the ethnically-diverse South Side of St. Louis and into downtown.

Just a slight detour to set the scene:
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c283/jeffvstl/DSCN1971.jpg

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http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c283/jeffvstl/DSCN1974.jpg

Let's hit Gravois, shall we?
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[JivecitySTL]

What a tease! We want more!

[vjhe]

OH WOW!!!! I haven't seen Gravois Avenue since I left St. Louis many years ago. I would travel Gravois everyday on my way to school (Go Roosevelt!!). Thanks for posting these and bringing back memories. It is pretty much as I remember it. :yes: :banana:

[Evergrey]

I agree. MORE MORE MORE!!!!!!!

[JivecitySTL]

That's more like it!!!

[Top Of The Park]

Looks like North Denver

[BigKidD]

I know many people always state how much St. Louis reminds them of an East Coast city, so I will do that too. http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c283/jeffvstl/DSCN1967.jpg
The photo above might as well be from a rust belt city because that's what it reminds me of. Great photos overall STLgasm.

[boden]

sweet....2for1

[STLgasm]

Evidently I double loaded some of these pics-- I am cleaning the thread up now. Please disregard the duplicate thread.

[STLgasm]

All fixed now!

[flar]

Nice urban neighbourhood

[FloridaChicago]

Yummmm, Hodaks on Gravois. I was all ready to move to St. Louis a year and a half ago, then the housing bubble burst and I couldn't sell my house. Now I'm stuck in this hell hole, South Florida, just waiting for the global warming waters to rise.

[mrherodotus]

A too rare treat from Gasm.

[ColDayMan]

Very nice.

[HomeInMyShoes]

Damn 73, why did I leave again? Nice stuff STLgasm and as mentioned, definitely not often enough.

[JivecitySTL]

The photo above might as well be from a rust belt city because that's what it reminds me of.

St. Louis is usually grouped in with the Rust Belt, since it is one of the oldest industrial Midwest cities.

[Grimm]

Nice set.

[denveraztec]

Good tour, thank you!

[STLeric]

Great shots !!! Got to love south city!!!!

[arbeiter]

fantastic, one of the better neighborhood threads to come by recently. Stari Grad means "old city" if I am not mistaken.

[Expat]

Priceless. Thanks Gasm. More like this please!

[MobyLL]

Loved the tour Gasm, Thanks!

This guy looks like the Albanian love child of Sly Stallone and Donnie Osmond:
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c283/jeffvstl/DSCN1903.jpg

[Xing]

Good work Gasm!

[Ex-Ithacan]

^^ LOL @ Moby.


A great slice of daily life in St Louis. No frills, but real as it gets. Thanks Gasm.

[newboldphilly]

So is that a Croatian 'hood then?

I've never hung out in STL but from your pictures it reminds
me of PGH, B'more, and parts of Raleigh or Durham or Greensboro - all rolled up into the same place.

Awesome!

[JivecitySTL]

So is that a Croatian 'hood then?

I've never hung out in STL but from your pictures it reminds
me of PGH, B'more, and parts of Raleigh or Durham or Greensboro - all rolled up into the same place.
Awesome!

Many of these pics were taken in the Bevo neighborhood, aka "Little Sarajevo," which is the largest Bosnian community in the United States.

And good call-- St. Louis has a lot in common with Baltimore and Pittsburgh.

[STLeric]

Many of these pics were taken in the Bevo neighborhood, aka "Little Sarajevo," which is the largest Bosnian community in the United States.

And good call-- St. Louis has a lot in common with Baltimore and Pittsburgh.

The ironic thing about this Bosnian community in south STL is the fact that it is in the heart of Dutchtown, a formally & predominently German neighborhood. I guess a name change might be appropriate in the future.

[erasercut]

Oh yes, Bevo Mill! I remember eating there when I was a kid and the lobster tanks and the violin trio that would come to your table. We thought that was so fancy.

[CGII]

I take Rust Belt as a compliment to Milwaukee. St. Louis is very Rust Belt and I mean that with as much flattery as I can. I would take Rust Belt over New England village anyday.

[Max the Urban]

Nice...very nice. I had no idea how urban St. Louis was. At times I thought I was looking at photos of Chicago. Baltimore and Pittsburgh have more rowhouses clustered together. It appears to me that STL has more detached housing stock than Pittsburgh or Baltimore. Either way, STL is way more urban than I ever imagined it to be. It could EASILY fit into the East Coast city template. It's hard to imagine that with it's urban setting there was never a subway or heavy rail running through there. Light rail in urban cities the size of STL, Pittsburgh or B-More seems to be "insulting." Imagine an elevated track running down Gravois...

[JivecitySTL]

Max, maybe you'd enjoy some more St. Louis pics:

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=243663

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=143526

[HooverDam]

Great photos. I went to college in St Louis (Go Gorloks) and my ex GF lives in this neighborhood. One year for my Bday we went to a really good Bosnian place over by the Bevo Mill, though I can't recall the name of it now (it had some really plane name like "Something st Restaurant").

As much as Im happy to be back in my beloved hometown of Phoenix, there is a lot I miss about St Louis, especially the brickwork and buildings right up against the streets.

[wanderer34]

STL looks more more a small-ass Chicago, to me!!! The housing stock looks similar to me!!!

[st steven]

STL looks more more a small-ass Chicago, to me!!! The housing stock looks similar to me!!!


Indeed. Again, great thread. Hey Jive and Gasm, why don't you guys post your photo threads over at urbanstl? There are probably a lot of people on that forum who don't visit this one, and they would definitely appreciate your talent!

[STLgasm]

Good idea! I will do it now...

[FloridaChicago]

STL looks more more a small-ass Chicago, to me!!! The housing stock looks similar to me!!!
The housing stock in Chicago, for the most part, consists of balloon frame wooden houses. St. Louis has much more brick from what I saw. Most visitors to Chicago see just the north side and lake front neighborhoods which are brick and graystone.

[Hozay]

Awesome tour!

[matguy7070]

Very nice!

Diverse STL!

[Max the Urban]

Max, maybe you'd enjoy some more St. Louis pics:

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=243663

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=143526

Jive, I am forever enlightened. I think I'm developing a fetish for this town...:yes: Simply stated, "OUTSTANDING"!

[Max the Urban]

Jive, is most of the STL housing stock bricked up like in your massive thread? Also, it looks like Metrolink has some parts of it that run in a subway. Are there underground stations?

[STLgasm]

Jive, is most of the STL housing stock bricked up like in your massive thread? Also, it looks like Metrolink has some parts of it that run in a subway. Are there underground stations?

To answer both of your questions... YES and YES!

The VAST majority of St. Louis housing made of brick. In fact, non-brick housing is very rare, except in a few neighborhoods. I could post pictures all day long of our endless blocks of brick vernacular, but I'll spare you. Well, just a few...

http://www.pbase.com/jivecity/image/25996376.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/jivecity/image/25996130.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/jivecity/image/18064329.jpg

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http://www.pbase.com/jivecity/image/18064269.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/jivecity/image/21412008.jpg


And yes, our light-rail system has numerous subway stations. In downtown St. Louis, the trains run through 19th century freight train tunnels:

http://www.pbase.com/jivecity/image/25113119.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/jivecity/image/25996492.jpg

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c283/jeffvstl/P1010030.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/jivecity/image/25113170.jpg

The newer cross-county line runs through partially in a subway (newly built):

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c283/jeffvstl/P1010054.jpg

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c283/jeffvstl/P1010053.jpg

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c283/jeffvstl/P1010044-1.jpg

[JivecitySTL]

Max the Urban-- keep in mind that for most of its history, St. Louis was one of the top 10 largest American cities. As recently as 1950, the city proper had a population of nearly 860,000 packed into a compact 61 square miles. So the infrastructure here mirrors that of a big eastern city. Much of that remains, and St. Louis is amidst a major comeback. Thanks for checking out the threads.

[ArchMadness]

I always loved the topography of South StL. The rolling hills add to an already interesting cityscape. Great thread.

[LA21st]

The housing stock in Chicago, for the most part, consists of balloon frame wooden houses. St. Louis has much more brick from what I saw. Most visitors to Chicago see just the north side and lake front neighborhoods which are brick and graystone.

I disagree. Chicago's housing stock is extremely diverse. I cant really say one thing really dominates the others. There are a ton of 3-5 story brick apt/condo buildings in a LARGE portion of the city. Look at live local and scan over all Chicago hoods.Very interesting.

But great St Louis pics. I enjoyed my visit there.

[Canasian]

Lotsa Bosnian names here. Nice shots. I've heard St. Louis has about 50,000 Bosnians.

[MplsTodd]

I love the brick buildings!! I was in St. Louis last month and really enjoyed driving around the city. The density of the Central West End was amazing! Downtown Washington Avenue is looking vibrant. The Del-Mar Loop area was filled with people checking out great restaurants and clubs. I ate a cheap breakfast at Eat Rite just south of downtown (near Purina). Wasn't that on Gravois??

[Max the Urban]

Max the Urban-- keep in mind that for most of its history, St. Louis was one of the top 10 largest American cities. As recently as 1950, the city proper had a population of nearly 860,000 packed into a compact 61 square miles. So the infrastructure here mirrors that of a big eastern city. Much of that remains, and St. Louis is amidst a major comeback. Thanks for checking out the threads.

Gasm, it's too much...lower the prescription before I OVERDOSE!:koko: This forum is amazing. Not only do I get to satisfy my skyscraper/urban fetish but I also learn a GREAT deal about cities in the process. Thanks for those pics. My questions have been convincingly answered!

Jive, thanks for the history lesson. Again, I love being educated because ignorance is akin to a virus. Everybody suffers. Back in the day St. Louis must've been vibrant and bustling. Today, the "bones" of yesterday remain and adds a rare nostalgia to the city. These cookie cutter cities of today can only envy this example of "Real Urbanism." Did the population migrate to greener pastures? The density of STL must've been about 12,000-14,000 per square mile at its heyday. That's BANANAS!:banana:

LA21st, thank you for providing the tip on live local!!! :banger: I went on the site and punched in a couple of cities and actually "flew" over them from a birdseye point of view. I was literally frothing at the mouth! :slob: And you were right, :iagree: Chicago does in fact have a substantial amount of brick housing stock spread throughout the city.

[JivecitySTL]

I love the brick buildings!! I was in St. Louis last month and really enjoyed driving around the city. The density of the Central West End was amazing! Downtown Washington Avenue is looking vibrant. The Del-Mar Loop area was filled with people checking out great restaurants and clubs. I ate a cheap breakfast at Eat Rite just south of downtown (near Purina). Wasn't that on Gravois??

Eat-Rite isn't far from Gravois, but it's actually on Chouteau (at 7th St.). Talk about greasy spoon! That place is a trip. Everyone in there looks like a sex offender, but you gotta love that shit.

Max the Urban, you are an example of a truly respectable forumer. I love how you take a genuine interest in learning about new places. We should all be as open minded as you are. Seriously.

[the pope]

gravois or gratiot, i can't choose.

nice work.