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A little about Downtown

From its days as the 20th century epicenter of St. Louis’ garment and shoe manufacturing district, downtown St. Louis has undergone a myriad of changes and modifications. What was once considered just another depressed urban core has been reinvented as a neighborhood for the 21st century Midwesterner. Downtown’s Loft District blurs the line between work and play, thanks to its cohabitation of major corporations, small businesses, residential lofts, boutiques, galleries, restaurants and nightspots.

The history of Downtown

The founding history of the downtown area of St. Louis relates to the founding of the city. Pierre Laclede chose to found the city on the bluffs because it had access to the river for trade and transportation, was above most floods and defensible against hostile Native Americans. Laclede found the present-day downtown area the perfect place to run a bustling fur trade with the Native Americans of the region. In the community's early days, Laclede acted as the de facto leader of St. Louis. While the settlement was named after King Louis IX of France, most residents called it "Laclede Village." Laclede planned the format of the city streets, and oversaw the construction of the settlement's first buildings. Although initial growth was slow, the settlement received a stimulus when France surrendered all of its territorial holdings east of the Mississippi River to Great Britain after the Seven Years' War.