Bridges
Eads Bridge: One of the world’s most beautiful bridges, it went bankrupt and was twice condemned as a navigation hazard.
Martin Luther King Bridge: It opened in 1951 as the Veterans Bridge. The land at its foot was ground zero for the Great Fire of 1849.
McKinley Bridge: It was named not for President William McKinley, but for railroad magnate William Brown McKinley. It opened in 1910 and carried trains, horse-drawn vehicles, and automobiles.
Poplar Street Bridge: If you commute from the Metro East, you already know it far too well.
Merchants Bridge: The new Mississippi bridge will cross just south of it, at the foot of Cass Avenue.
New Chain of Rocks (I-270) Bridge: It eased the insanity of the narrow Old Chain of Rocks Bridge, now happily used by cyclists.
Clark Bridge: This cable-stayed bridge set an engineering precedent when it opened.
MacArthur Bridge: Its construction was a brazen attempt in 1889 to break the Terminal Railroad Association’s stranglehold on railroad traffic.
Jefferson Barracks Bridge: Bridges, actually. The original J.B. Bridge was built during World War II to connect the barracks with Scott Air Force Base.
Shipwrecks
City of Saltillo: Wrecked in 1910, it is lodged near Pevely and visible in low water. When it struck a rock and flames shot up from the furnaces, men chivalrously ushered women and children to the gangplank. The sinking boat rolled over, claiming their lives.
USS Inaugural: In the 1993 flood, this U.S. Navy minesweeper broke loose from her moorings in front of the Gateway Arch, smashed into one of the piers of the Poplar Street Bridge, and now lies just south of the MacArthur Bridge.
SS Sultana: The steamboat was bound for St. Louis in April 1865 when the boilers failed right above Memphis, 13 days after President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated.
Cape Girardeau: Later renamed the River Queen, the vessel sank in 1968. You can see the wreck in low water just north of the Eads Bridge.
Maria: This steamer’s boilers blew in 1864, possibly from sabotage, leading rivermen to utter the phrase “Hell and Maria” for decades thereafter.
Islands
Bloody Island: Its scratchy underbrush and cottonwood trees once hid duels, cockfights, and illegal boxing. Engineer Robert E. Lee joined the island to East St. Louis, and the Gateway Geyser now erupts on that once-bloodied soil.
Kaskaskia Island: It’s part of Illinois, yet it lies on the west side of the Mississippi and can only be reached by car from Missouri. Three centuries ago, this French settlement was the capital of Illinois.
Chouteau Island: The 10 miles of river west of this manmade island are the longest barge-free stretch between St. Paul, Minn., and New Orleans, La.
Maple Island: Just south of the Melvin Price Locks and Dam, this area is a popular spot for anglers hoping to snag spoonbill and catfish.
The Gauge
The gauge at the foot of Market Street is the oldest on the Middle Mississippi River. It was created at the start of the Civil War and reached its high mark in 1993, at 49.58 feet. Its average is 11.3 feet; its low was –6.2 feet, when the river froze in January 1940.
Secret Places
Angel on Column: At Dickson and Lewis streets, one block from the Laclede Power Center, there’s a column bearing an angel; Tim Tucker traded a piece of Theodore Link architectural salvage for some columns, and set the angel atop one at this site.
“The Castle on the River”: This comprises three or four industrial buildings, owned by Tom Carr of Atomic Neon, that are right against the bluffs and are used for artists’ studios.
Big Mound: Ever spot the rock on a plinth at Broadway and Mound Street and wonder what it is? (The brass marker is gone.) It’s the site of Big Mound, the last of the Native-American mounds to be leveled on the North Side. Before it was destroyed in 1869, it stood 30 feet high and 150 feet wide.
Black Forest Park: Though most people know you can see the river from Bellerive Park, another less-known spot is Black Forest Park in Lemay, right next to Notre Dame High School.
Websites
greatriverroad.com: Find info on wineries, antique stores, bed-and-breakfasts, campsites, visitor centers, events, and more.
confluencegreenway.org: Read about heritage, conservation, and recreational efforts to enhance the area surrounding the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers. Download maps and audio tours.
greatrivers.info: Since 2000, Great Rivers Greenway has worked to develop The River Ring, a 600-mile web of more than 45 greenways, parks, and trails across the region. Refer to the online maps before setting out on the trails. (And check out trailnet.org and mcttrails.org for more trail maps.)
1mississippi.net: The Mississippi River Network, a coalition of 30 nonprofits, works to protect the river. Learn what you can do to get involved in the effort.
waterwaysjournal.net: The Waterways Journal is “the news journal of record for the towing and barge industry on the inland waterways.”
steamboats.org: This covers all things steamboat-related, including river lingo, photos, and video of the boats in action.
www2.mvr.usace.army.mil/NIC2/default.cfm: Monitor lock and river conditions and track specific vessels as they move along the Mississippi.
