National Register Historic Districts are an honor, and when a whole neighborhood—or even just a part of one—is awarded the designation, we should be proud that the cultural and architectural history of St. Louis has been recognized. But recent events have reminded me that just because National Register status is awarded does not mean that our work is done. And it certainly does not protect individual buildings. Numerous historic structures have been torn down in St. Louis over the past 40 years or so even though they had received a nomination. There is no protection, except perhaps in the court of public opinion and how it can sway the choices of government decision-makers.
I thought of that recently as yet another historic structure was destroyed May 15 in the St. Louis Place neighborhood, which I’ve written about extensively in the past. Although the entire neighborhood has never been one giant National Register Historic District, there are three districts that reveal the rich history of the area: Clemens House–Columbia Brewery, St. Liborius Parish, and “St. Louis Place,” which stretches along the blocks of St. Louis Avenue and the eponymous park.
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St. Louis Place was once one of the densest neighborhoods in the city. It was home to successive waves of immigrants, going back to the mid-19th century when it was platted as the Union Addition. But due to the loss of historic housing stock, many blocks of St. Louis Place would not even qualify to be in a National Register Historic District today.
The first historic district, St. Liborius Parish, alludes in its names that a portion of its story is in the past. When the nomination was written in 1979, the Roman Catholic parish was still open with 124 members, and there was already hope that people would move back into the neighborhood. They would, but not in time to save the parish, which would close in 1992. In this case, people would not allow the massive church, its neighboring convent, and the buildings to deteriorate. There is a community garden, a skate park in the church, and a Catholic workers’ organization in the old convent building. St. Liborius and its buildings are safe.
To the south of St. Liborius, the picture becomes more complex in the next historic district. The Clemens House–Columbia Brewery National Historic District, created in 1984, shows how adaptive reuse can save an abandoned and obsolete industrial complex, while the destruction of a beautiful country home to fire in the middle of the night shows the worst of neglect. I’ve written before about the Clemens House, and how it was one of the landmarks of the Northside, built for a major landowner and relative of Mark Twain. It served most of its life as a home for Roman Catholic religious orders, and it was not in bad shape even 20 years ago. It did not have to burn down after being stripped of its valuable ornaments, suffering major structural collapses, and having its famous cast-iron front porch removed.
Just a couple of blocks away, the other half of the historic district, the Columbia Brewery, has been completely renovated into affordable housing. After it was vacated by the Falstaff Brewing Company, it sat empty, but instead of being destroyed, the old building was saved. Likewise, it does not exist in a vacuum; there are dozens of other historic houses around the brewery that were renovated along with it, giving the sense of a community. There are even additional in-fill apartment buildings of similar scale added to the west, creating a real neighborhood around the towering edifice.
To the north, in the newest historic district, St. Louis Place, named after the neighborhood, there have been some tragic losses that show the importance of organizations and individuals stepping up and saving buildings before they are destroyed by neglect or demolition. Even though it is only a decade old, several of the most historic structures are already gone, along with numerous smaller but still noteworthy houses that were part of the original nomination. Many houses just south of St. Louis Avenue were bought out and demolished by eminent domain for the new National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency.
But one notable landmark, the former Reservoir Market, seemed to have just faded away slowly over the course of several years. Taking its name from the original reservoir for the City of St. Louis, later incorporated into St. Louis Place Park, the market was then converted into a school building for nearby Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church (itself a victim of fire and then demolition). First, there was a roof collapse along the western façade, and then more structural failure, and then one day the whole building was demolished.
Then, just two Saturdays ago, one of the most distinctive examples of the Second Empire style in St. Louis, the John Loler House on St. Louis Avenue and North 22nd Street, was almost completely destroyed by a huge fire. The flames consumed the house so quickly that there was little time for the firefighters to save it. A portion of the limestone façade and the brick wall separating the two sides of the building are all that are still standing to remind passersby that a 151-year-old house once stood there.
There’s increased optimism around the region that the NGA will bring new development to St. Louis Place. And certainly, talking to friends in the neighborhood, there’s been an increase in real estate speculation. But I think about all the endangered buildings, including the Freie Gemeinde, built by a group of German revolutionaries, that is holding on by a thread after a portion of it collapsed several years ago. The Freie Gemeinde is part of the historic district but it has languished in its current state for years. Hopefully, the goals of speculators and historic preservation can reconcile and the community can save more of the buildings that make neighborhoods such as St. Louis Place worth investing in.
