The St. Louis Arch is a fun and an educational monument. Lewis and Clark once stood right where it sits at one time. Lewis and Clark were the first Americans to cross what is now the western portion of the United States in 1804 and passed through St. Louis on the way. The expedition was commissioned by Thomas Jefferson consisting of selected Army volunteers which were Meriwether Lewis and William Clark.
Meriwether Lewis was born in Albemarle County, Virginia. He was an American explorer and was also a military man. Lewis did not have an education until he was thirteen years old. President Thomas Jefferson appointed Lewis as an aide on April 1, 1801 ("The Lewis and Clark Expedition…”). Jefferson wanted Lewis to command an expedition that Jefferson planned, which was to explore the Missouri River by going through the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Ocean in hopes of finding California and wealth through gold (Jones 44).…show more content… William Clark was born in Caroline County, Virginia on August 1 in 1770. Because Clark was also an American explorer and was in the military with Lewis, that is how they became acquainted. During the Nineteenth Century, St. Louis teemed with activity. In 1904 St. Louis held the Summer Olympics attracting a million visitors. But when the 1930s hit, that all went down hill due to the Great Depression. St. Louis changed and was no longer the destination it had once been.
The St. Louis Arch helped it regain life that it once had by putting it back in its prime. The park is dedicated to President Thomas Jefferson and others who were involved with the nation’s westward expansion. The St. Louis Arch is a 630 foot monument and is the tallest manmade monument still to this day. The arch symbolizes freedom and is the gateway to the western expansion. There was an architectural competition to see who would build and design the arch on May 30, 1947 (Jones