Gateway to the West: Early St. Louis (1764-1857)
Imagine a time when steam-powered paddle boats crowded the downtown riverfront, cargo was hauled along the historic cobblestone streets, and slaves were bought and sold as property.
A former National Park Ranger at the Gateway Arch and Old Courthouse, Bobby brings early St. Louis to life, exploring its history, culture and personalities, providing fascinating, entertaining, thought-provoking, and sometimes unsettling glimpses into the past.
Highlights include:
- The importance and meaning of the Gateway to the West - How settlers walked 2000 miles to California & Oregon, including their encounters with nature, and Native Americans
- The significance of the Mississippi River
- Pierre Laclede and the founding of St. Louis by French settlers in 1764
- Auguste Chouteau and the Fur Trade
- Jim Beckwourth, infamous Mountain Man
- York, the slave who traveled with the famous explorers Lewis & Clark
- Early St. Louis as it might have looked in 1800s
- The Cholera Epidemic of 1830's
- The Great Fire of 1849
- The Dred Scott Decision of 1857 which led to the Civil War
This program is ideal for grades 3 through adult and addresses the grade level expectations for History and Social Studies. Download a Flyer!
