New frontiers of music, culinary exploration, and one of the most iconic monuments in the U.S are just some of the things that create the unique and charming flavor that is St.Louis.
You'll find Missouri's largest metropolis perched on the west bank of the Mississippi as it rolls south towards New Orleans.
While blues, bricks, baseball and beer are etched into the city's culture, St.Louis has been shaped by a rich history.
The city got its start when two French fur traders started an isolated but strategic settlement on a high bluff of the Mississippi in 1763.
Growing steadily into a village, and then a town, it was named St.Louis, in honor of the King of France,
Saint Louis the ninth.
The city played a vital role in America's westward expansion in the 19th century.
Explorers Lewis and Clark embarked on their historic expedition from here, blazing the way for other hopeful settlers.
The city thrived as an outfitting center where pioneers gathered supplies before setting out into the wild west, and it soon adopted the nickname "the gateway to the west".
Curving to a height of 630 feet above the Mississippi,the Gateway Arch was created in 1963 as a tribute to St.Louis' role in opening up the west.
