“The Gateway to the West” – Gateway Arch National Park, St. Louis Missouri

We recently spent some time in St. Louis, Missouri, and our favorite thing to do while traveling is sightseeing. One of the sights we visited was the Gateway Arch, the world’s tallest arch. Having never seen it before, we were astonished at the engineering it took to design and build this amazing monument. It is still considered an engineering marvel, even by today's standards.

The park surrounding the Gateway Arch was initially designated the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, so named to commemorate the expansion of the US territory, by President Roosevelt in 1935. In 1945 a nationwide architectural competition was announced to find a design that would symbolize American culture and civilization, and in 1947 the contest opened. Eero Saarinen's design is what we see today, even though the judging committee first told Eero's father that he was the winner, the error was corrected quickly but can you imagine thinking you won only to find out it was your son? Fortunately, Eliel Saarinen was a good sport and celebrated his son's win instead.

Construction on the iconic Arch finally began on February 12, 1963, and concluding on October 25, 1965, taking over two years to complete. However, the entire national park complex, of which the Arch is the centerpiece, took about 41 years from the initial land designation until the final attractions were opened and dedications were completed, in June 1976.

Some interesting facts about the Arch are:

Forty city blocks were demolished to build the arch and the park surrounding it, which included several warehouses and 290 businesses.

The Arch's legs were built separately and if their measurements were off even 1/64th (that's less than half a millimeter) of an inch they would never have met in the middle.

The insurance company for the project determined that there would be 13 workers who would perish during the construction of the arch, fortunately, there was not one fatality.

Both father (Eliel Saarinen) and son (Eero Saarinen) entered the competition.

The arch is as wide as it is tall, and the legs' foundation is 60 feet deep also going into the bedrock. It's designed to withstand an 18-inch sway in high winds or earthquakes.

The tram system inside the arch was designed by a college dropout whose family was in the elevator business. His design is part elevator and part Ferris wheel.

Presidents aren't allowed at the top of the Arch, the space is too small which compromises their security. Only one President has ever been to the top and that was Dwight D. Eisenhower, who signed the order for construction in 1954.

The Arch is currently under renovation at a price that is twice as expensive as it was to build it.

Want to see the view from the Arch, click the link below for the live webcams.
St. Louis Arch Webcams

We really enjoyed learning about the history of this marvel and honestly, can't wait to go back. Have you ever been to the Arch? Tell us what impressed you the most.