The Monday Mystery..

Where in St. Louis am I?

This week is a little harder to guess, even for the locals.

Last week, was The Ruins in Tower Grove Park.  That place is a HUGELY popular backdrop for area weddings.  If you find yourself there between May and October on a Saturday afternoon, you will be lucky to identify the rocky structure.  People are practically climbing on each other to get a picture taken all over the rocks.

These "rocks" are arranged pretty nicely, but it wasn't always this way.  These are actually "the ruins" of the old Lindell Hotel from 1867.  I can't remember if the hotel burned to the ground (I think so), or if it was just demolished in time.  Either way, Henry Shaw had the large stones carted out to Tower Grove Park and placed around the pond commissioned for the miniature sailboating hobby that was extremely popular around the turn of the century.

Truly a man before his time, Henry Shaw was quite famous for recycling old stonework from around town and using it throughout the park.  The Magnolia Street entrance gates are columns from The Old Courthouse.  The balusters surrounding the pond containing The Ruins are from the top of another old building that was being razed downtown.  Several other examples randomly appear around the park.  As time goes, I will try and chronicle what I learn.  The more I learn about the park, the more it, and Henry Shaw, fascinates me.

Tower Grove Fountain..

The central fountain in the lake at Tower Grove Park.  This lake is surrounded by recycled materials.  Henry Shaw used ruins from a burned hotel to construct "The Ruins" that have become such a popular wedding photo site.  The balusters surrounding the south end of the lake adorned the tops of buildings in downtown.  Shaw had those moved to his park before he died, too.  I don't know if there's a history to the fountain yet, but I'm looking...

Compton Hill Water Tower

Before modern electrical production methods, steam-driven pumps were used to send water throughout the city.  The steam was powered in a 22 mile loop around downtown St. Louis originating in the Ashley Power Plant at the edge of the Mississippi River just north of Laclede's Landing.  The steam often caused large surges in pressure, often causing pipes to rattle and shake.  This pressure also caused multi-story buildings to have low, or no, water pressure in the higher floors.  These standpipes were erected to equalize the water pressure.  For aestetic purposes, towers were built to hide these standpipes.

At the peak of their use, nearly 500 of these towers dotted cities across the USA.  Most were torn down as their usefullness became outdated.  As of this writing, only 7 remain....three of which are in St. Louis, MO.  And, each has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since the early 1970s.  The Grand, The Bissel, and the Compton Hill Water Towers were built in respective order.
Yesterday, I drove to the base of the Compton Hill Water Tower, the city's "newest."  It was built in 1898 and stands 179 feet tall.  The cost, then, was $48,000.  The tower was taken out of service in 1929.  Up to 1984, you could climb a spiral staircase inside to the top and grab a 360 degree view of the city of St. Louis.  This standpipe was part of the equalization of water pressure process, but it was also necessary because of the Compton Hill Resevoir located very near the standpipe's location.

The Compton Hill Resevoir was built to provide an adequate supply of water to Tower Grove Park.  This park was built and donated by Henry Shaw, one of the city's most influential millionaires of the 19th century.  Like other areas of the city, follow this blog for long and you will learn about Tower Grove Park and Missouri Botanical Gardens, both Shaw creations.
In 1995, a project was started to renovate the tower and surrounding park.  The renovation was completed in 1999.  Occasionally, the tower is opened during neighborhood house tours so visitors can take in the views.  For scheduled tours, visit the Water Tower and Park Preservation Society's Calendar (calendar).

The above photo was taken from a puddle reflection in the resevoir area.  For further information check the Compton Heights Neighborhood page.

Approaching Autumn..

One of my favorite late summer visits is the Tower Grove Lily Ponds.  This must not have been a good year for lillies because very little was happening in the park (or maybe I was a little late this year).  Last year was much better.  Maybe I'll post some of those images down the road.  (Image shot using ISO400, f/6.3, 1/400 and my 55-250mm lens)