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St. Louis Union Station, Albert Montesi
and Richard Deposki.
Part of the "Images
of America" series already featured
on this page, this book illustrates the detail the series
enables. Whereas other books have looked at whole cities,
here the focus is on St. Louis's Union
Station, not only as a building but also as a symbol
of the Midwestern city's evolution last century. Tracing
its history from the Old St. Louis Union Depot to the buildings
current use as an indoor mall and hotel, black and white
images tell its story. Local architect Theodore Link won
a competition in the late 19th century, basing his design
of the station on a walled town in France. To this day,
the rusticated stone exterior and prominent tower have a
strong presence in downtown St. Louis, its elaborate interior
on par with big city stations like Grand Central Terminal.
The rise of the automobile and aviation traffic could have
been the end of Union Station, but a $150 million restoration
in the 1980's returned the building to its former glory,
even though the functions inside are different. Interestingly,
a hotel has long been the structure's one consistency over
the years, serving travelers traversing America in the early
years and now serving tourists visiting the "Gateway
to the West."
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