Book Overview
From its earliest days as Old Frenchtown, Soulard,
St. Louis, has embodied a bold and colorful tapestry of
immigrant life in America. With remarkable depth, authors
Montesi and Deposki have detailed the birth, destruction,
and final restoration of this historic area through over
200 photographs.
Bequeathed by the widow of surveyor Antoine Soulard
to the city of St. Louis in 1842, what was once a plot of
land intended for a vegetable market became a center of a
community of popular parks, breweries, churches, and shops.
Masses of Eastern European immigrants flocked to Soulard,
just outside downtown St. Louis, to start a new life of hope
and growth. German, Irish, Italian, and Czech influences can
be seen here in the images of the infamous "brew barons,"
horse-drawn market carts, and "flounder" houses that the
authors have reproduced with insightful captions. Captured
here in original photographs is the inescapable fury of the
Great Cyclone of 1896 that destroyed the area but not its
clenched-fist determination to survive. Montesi and Deposki
take us on a heroic journey through the annals of time to
discover the tenacious heart of a neighborhood now known
as St. Louis' most popular venue for jazz and blues
St. Louis, has embodied a bold and colorful tapestry of
immigrant life in America. With remarkable depth, authors
Montesi and Deposki have detailed the birth, destruction,
and final restoration of this historic area through over
200 photographs.
Bequeathed by the widow of surveyor Antoine Soulard
to the city of St. Louis in 1842, what was once a plot of
land intended for a vegetable market became a center of a
community of popular parks, breweries, churches, and shops.
Masses of Eastern European immigrants flocked to Soulard,
just outside downtown St. Louis, to start a new life of hope
and growth. German, Irish, Italian, and Czech influences can
be seen here in the images of the infamous "brew barons,"
horse-drawn market carts, and "flounder" houses that the
authors have reproduced with insightful captions. Captured
here in original photographs is the inescapable fury of the
Great Cyclone of 1896 that destroyed the area but not its
clenched-fist determination to survive. Montesi and Deposki
take us on a heroic journey through the annals of time to
discover the tenacious heart of a neighborhood now known
as St. Louis' most popular venue for jazz and blues
Format:Paperback
Language:English
ISBN:0738507172
ISBN13:9780738507170
Release Date:July 2000
Publisher:Arcadia Publishing (SC)
Length:128 Pages
Weight:0.65 lbs.
Dimensions:0.4" x 6.5" x 9.2"
Customer Reviews
1 rating
Fascinating neighborhood history
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 23 years ago
A wonderful pictorial history of a colorful Saint Louis neighborhood. I grew up here and so did my parents. One minor correction -- page 33 contains a picture with the caption : "Two-and-a-half-year-old Angela Gaska was very serious about being photographed in 1916" -- this is a picture of my mother, and "Angeline Gaska" is the correct name -- my mother and I supplied the picture, and we were delighted that it was used for this book. I pointed out the incorrect first name to Dr. Montesi, and he took out his pen and corrected it on the spot -- he even authenticated the correction with his signature.
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