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The Gateway Arch
The Gateway Arch has become the
definitive symbol of the city of St. Louis and is the tallest monument in
the National Park system. At 630 feet the Arch is 75 feet taller than the
Washington Monument and more than twice as tall as the Statue of Liberty.
The Arch is the centerpiece of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial,
which also includes the Museum of Westward Expansion and the Old Courthouse. In 1935 40 city
blocks of the St. Louis riverfront was selected as the site for construction
of a monument to commemorate the westward expansion of the United States in
the 19th century. In 1947 the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial
Association held a nationwide competition to obtain an appropriate design
for the Memorial. The winner in the competition was architect Eero Saarinen
whose idea of a giant stainless steel arch in the shape of an inverted
catenary curve is a complex engineering feat. Construction on the Arch began
in 1963 and was completed in 1965. The interior of the Arch is hollow and contains a unique transport system leading to an observation deck at the top. A unique tram system that combines an elevator cable lift system with cars similar to Ferris wheel gondolas had been installed. The cars hold 5 passengers and 8 cars are linked to form a train with a capacity of 40 passengers. The trip to the top of the Arch takes four minutes, and the trip back down takes three minutes. The car doors have narrow glass panes, allowing passengers to see the interior stairways and structure of the Arch during the trip. An observation area on top of the arch has small windows that allow views across the Mississippi River and southern Illinois with its prominent Mississippian culture mounds to the east at Cahokia, and the City of Saint Louis and St. Louis County to the west beyond the city. On a clear day, one can see up to thirty miles. The Gateway Arch is part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, which also includes the Museum of Westward Expansion and the Old Courthouse National Historic Site. Visiting the Gateway
Arch
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