Seeking St Louis

Complementing the new permanent exhibition at the Missouri Historical Society, this anthology gathers over three centuries of writings on St. Louis by 100 individuals who have been inspired to describe the physical and cultural essence of this region. The volume contains excerpted selections from all genres--travel diaries, poetry, fiction, journalism, drama, and rare out-of-print and previously unpublished archival material--including poems by Angus Umphraville, from the first volume of verse published west of the Mississippi, and newspaper articles by Theodore Dreiser when he was a beat reporter for the St. Louis Globe-Democrat. Other compelling excerpts were authored by such notables as Auguste Chouteau, Charles Dickens, William Wells Brown, William T. Sherman, Sara Teasdale, T. S. Eliot, Tennessee Williams, Fanny Hurst, William S. Burroughs, Miles Davis, Nzotake Shange, John Lutz, Carl Phillips, and Quincy Troupe. A biographical introduction precedes each entry to place the author and the excerpt in the proper historical context. The content of Seeking St. Louis was enriched by the involvement of several of the St. Louis area's foremost literary experts--Robert Boyd, Jan Garden Castro, Gerald Early, Wayne Fields, and Karen Goering--who served as contributing editors.

Though very few teams can accurately be called dynasties, the 1940s Cardinals certainly made a strong case. Detractors argue that World War II made the 40s an asterisk decade, with a huge loss of talent and significant changes to the ball and to the game itself. During that era, though, the Cardinals dominated the National League, winning four pennants and three World Series titles, and their rosters included names like Musial and Slaughter. This is the history of the Cardinals during the 1940s, a decade that saw many of the greatest St. Louis clubs while war and integration significantly altered the game. Chapters follow the Cards year-by-year, covering each season with description, statistics and analysis. Interwoven throughout are the stories of wartime changes, including the loss of general manager Branch Rickey; the death of Judge Landis; the Pacific Coast League's demand for major league status; the first attempt at a players' union; and Mexican League talent raids. An appendix offers complete individual hitting and pitching statistics.

Lisa and Sol board the luxury ocean liner St. Louis in Hamburg, Germany on May 13, 1939. Lisa and her family are in first class; Sol and his parents are below in tourist class. Both children have mixed feelings Ð theyÕre excited to be beginning this voyage to a better life, but sad to be leaving their old lives behind. They are Jewish, as are almost all of the 937 passengers on board, and although war has not been officially declared in Europe, the Nazis have been persecuting Jews for years. As the ship sets sail for Cuba, the atmosphere is optimistic. The passengers feel fortunate to have been able to buy landing permits, and their German captain, Gustave Shršder, is determined to get them to safety. The captainÕs voice alternates with Sol and LisaÕs, revealing the details they didnÕt know. As HitlerÕs propaganda machine turns Cuba against them, the mood on board changes to despair. The St. Louis and its Jewish passengers are turned away Ð first from Cuba, then the United States, and then Canada. This was the tragic true history of the St. Louis. Denied entry from port after port, the captain was forced to return his passengers to Europe, where many died in the Holocaust. Through the eyes of Sol and Lisa Ð both of whom survived the war and shared their experiences with Kathy Kacer Ð we see the injustice and heartbreak that were caused by the prejudice and ignorance of so many.

St. Louis is one of the most architecturally impressive cities in the United States, with a heritage of innovative design stretching back to the early 1800s. This is reflected in the architecture of the downtown area and surrounding neighborhoods. More than just about any city in America, St. Louis embraced the imposing forms and lush ornamentation of the Beaux Arts tradition. Indeed, one can make the argument that only Washington, D.C. in the United States has a more impressive collection of classically inspired structures. American City: St. Louis Architecture is the first large-format book on the city's architecture since the 1920s, and includes over 100 new color photographs and text for 50 of the city's most important structures. These range from such 19th Century masterpieces as Louis Sullivan's Wainwright Building, Alfred Mullet's Old Post Office and Theodore Link's Union Station, to Eero Saarinen's Gateway Arch, Tadao Andao's Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts Building and Maya Lin's recently completed Ellen Clark Hope Plaza.