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St. Louis
County, Missouri
 St.
Louis County was one of the
original five counties organized in the
Missouri Territory in 1812. Until the
railroads came in the 1850s, the area remained
mostly rural, and as French and English
settlers either died out or moved on, they
were replaced with German and Irish
immigrants.
Today’s boundaries of St.
Louis County are the same as they were in
1876, when the city and county were separated
into two distinct governmental entities by
citizens’ vote. St. Louis was the nation's
first home-rule city, but unlike most, it was
separated from any county.
Today, more than 1 million people live in St.
Louis County’s 91 cities and villages. It is
home to Washington, Maryville and Webster
universities, Fontbonne and Missouri Baptist
colleges, Concordia, Eden, Kenrick-Glennon,
and Covenant Theological seminaries, and the
University of Missouri-St. Louis. The county
seat is Clayton.
With 24 school districts and 23 fire
districts, St. Louis County is widely
considered on of the most fragmented counties
in the country. However, it’s patriotic and
impressive history is the glue that unites all
citizens. The county’s famous historic sites
include:
- Jefferson
Barracks. Named in honor of
former President Thomas Jefferson, the
barracks is considered the country’s
first “Infantry School of Practice.”
- Gen.
Daniel Bissell House. Gen.
Daniel Bissell was a military commander of
the Upper Louisiana Territory. The 1812
house has period family artifacts and
furnishings on display.
- Ebsworth
Park. The Frank Lloyd Wright
House in Ebsworth Park was the
architect’s first building in the area,
and one of his most complex designs. The
home is listed on the National Register of
Historic Places.
- Faust
County Park. The park is home
to the Sophia M. Sachs Butterfly House,
St. Louis Carousel, a historical village,
the Saint Louis Symphony Music School and
Thornhill, the estate of Frederick Bates,
Missouri’s second governor.
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