The City Hall of University City, Missouri, the seat of municipal government for
University City, Missouri
University City (colloquially, U. City) is an inner-ring suburb of the city of St. Louis in St. Louis County, Missouri, St. Louis County, in the U.S. state of Missouri. The population was measured at 35,065 by the 2020 United States Census, 2020 c ...
, was built in 1903 as the Woman's Magazine Building, the headquarters of a magazine publishing company, and became a
city hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...
in 1930. The building is part of the
University City Plaza
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...
, which was added to the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
on March 7, 1975.
History
The current University City City Hall building was built by magazine publisher and businessman
Edward Gardner Lewis
Edward Gardner Lewis (March 4, 1869 – August 10, 1950) was an American magazine publisher, land development promoter, and political activist. He was the founder of two planned communities that are now cities: University City, Missouri, and Ata ...
, a native of
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
who came to
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...
, in the late 1890s, selling
insect
Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...
extermination
Extermination or exterminate may refer to:
* Pest control, elimination of insects or vermin
* Genocide, extermination—in whole or in part—of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group
* Homicide or murder in general
* "Exterminate!", t ...
products and
medicines
A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy (pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the medical field and rel ...
that were said to be highly questionable. He bought a magazine called ''Winner'', based in downtown St. Louis, which he renamed ''Woman's Magazine'' and quickly built its circulation to the largest in the country, amassing a fortune in the process. In 1902, Lewis purchased 85 acres (344,000 m²) several miles west of downtown St. Louis. The tract, located near the construction site of the World's Fair, would become the nucleus for the
streetcar suburb
A streetcar suburb is a residential community whose growth and development was strongly shaped by the use of streetcar lines as a primary means of transportation. Such suburbs developed in the United States in the years before the automobile, when ...
of University City.
In 1903, with his publishing operation outgrowing its downtown location, Lewis began the construction of a new Lewis Publishing Company headquarters and Press Annex at this site. After
incorporating University City in 1906, he served three terms as mayor. During this time, he built the Woman's Magazine Building, an Egyptian temple and an Art Academy. But Lewis' financial empire in Missouri collapsed amid charges of
mail fraud
Mail fraud and wire fraud are terms used in the United States to describe the use of a physical or electronic mail system to defraud another, and are federal crimes there. Jurisdiction is claimed by the federal government if the illegal activit ...
,
bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...
, and
litigation
-
A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...
, and by 1915, he had moved his base of operations to
Atascadero, California
Atascadero (Spanish for "Mire") is a city in San Luis Obispo County, California, about equidistant from Los Angeles and San Francisco on U.S. Route 101. Atascadero is part of the San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles metropolitan statistical area, which e ...
. Lewis declared bankruptcy a second time in 1924.
The Magazine Building briefly sat vacant, until it was dedicated as the new city hall on November 1, 1930.
Carbon arc searchlight
For the
1904 St. Louis World's Fair, Lewis had the world's largest
carbon arc searchlight installed atop the dome, 135 feet above street level. An eight-ton, 80-inch light built by
General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable energ ...
in 1903, the searchlight developed at least 1 billion candlepower. The searchlight has a seven-foot carbon arc that is “ignited by carbon rods and reflected in a ground glass mirror that magnifies the light.”
The building elevator was too small to hold the light; its installation on the roof required a steam engine borrowed from the World's Fair. It sits on an elevator platform that raises the light through a hatch in the roof; today it is accessed via a spiral staircase in the council chambers.
It was first illuminated on April 30, 1904, opening night of the World's Fair,
to illuminate and advertise Lewis's tent city next to the Woman's Magazine Building.
After the Fair, the light sat unused until it was restored in 1930 for the dedication of the City Hall. It was used again for the dedication of the University City Public Library and then was neglected until it was restored and operated by City Engineer Robert Norvell in the mid-1960s. It was relit on May 10, 1965, by then-Mayor Nathan B. Kaufman and has been maintained and operated by his son, Bill Kaufman, from 1972 to the present.
Architecture
The octagonal, five-story
brick
A brick is a type of block used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a block composed of dried clay, but is now also used informally to denote other chemically cured cons ...
-and-
limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
building was built in a
Beaux-Arts style with a
dome
A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...
roof.
It was designed by
Herbert C. Chivers
Herbert may refer to:
People Individuals
* Herbert (musician), a pseudonym of Matthew Herbert
Name
* Herbert (given name)
* Herbert (surname)
Places Antarctica
* Herbert Mountains, Coats Land
* Herbert Sound, Graham Land
Australia
* Herbert, ...
(1869–1946), a local architect who had helped draft plans for
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
'
Union Station
A union station (also known as a union terminal, a joint station in Europe, and a joint-use station in Japan) is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway companies, allowing passengers to ...
.
Its landscaping was done in 1907 by landscape architect
George E. Kessler.
The building features a marble staircase connecting the first and second floors, a central rotunda and a large domed room on the top floor that serves as the council chambers.
Among the architectural details that have been removed from the building are
terra cotta
Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous.
In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta ...
cherub
A cherub (; plural cherubim; he, כְּרוּב ''kərūḇ'', pl. ''kərūḇīm'', likely borrowed from a derived form of akk, 𒅗𒊏𒁍 ''karabu'' "to bless" such as ''karibu'', "one who blesses", a name for the lamassu) is one of the u ...
s along its roof line and a tunnel connecting it to the much larger
Egyptian Building
The Egyptian Building is a historic college building in Richmond, Virginia, completed in 1845. It was the first permanent home of the Medical Department of Hampden-Sydney College (later renamed the Medical College of Virginia, MCV) and now is a pa ...
, now destroyed.
Renovation
Though structurally sound, the exterior of the building displayed signs of wear and tear by the turn of the millennium. The building underwent refurbishment in the mid-2000s, funded by a $2.9 billion bond measure passed in 2004. The project, led by Architect Trivers Associates, brought the building into compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) and led to LEED certification. To achieve LEED certification, a new HVAC system and water saving measures were installed. The renovations also included exterior tuckpointing and the replacement of the windows and historic restoration of the original wooden window sashes.
References
External links
{{Commonscat
57 photos of the building at the Missouri's Digital Heritage site of the State of MissouriThese include:
Laying the foundation for Woman's Magazine Building, 1903: View 1Laying the foundation for Woman's Magazine Building, 1903: View 2Delmar Boulevard, looking east, about 19097-minute documentary videoabout the searchlight. Produced by "Living St. Louis", a program produced by
KETC
KETC, virtual channel 9 ( UHF digital channel 23), is a PBS member television station licensed to St. Louis, Missouri, United States. The station is owned by St. Louis Regional Public Media. KETC's studios are located at the Dana Brown Communi ...
, St. Louis' public television station. Originally aired Aug. 14, 2007.
Video of the searchlight in operation(Posted to YouTube on July 18, 2010).
City halls in Missouri
Buildings and structures in St. Louis County, Missouri
Historic district contributing properties in Missouri
National Register of Historic Places in St. Louis County, Missouri
City and town halls on the National Register of Historic Places in Missouri
1903 establishments in Missouri