St. Charles City-County Library District
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HISTORICAL IMAGES of ST. CHARLES COUNTY
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City Hall, St. Charles, Missouri.





St. Charles Court House.

The structure pictured was the first courthouse built in St. Charles County. The county was organized in 1812 and the present boundaries were established in 1818. In 1833 the county purchased property located at the northwest corner of Main and Madison Streets with the intention of building a courthouse and jail.

In 1846 construction was begun on a one-story courthouse building designed by Solomon Jenkins. The design featured a Doric portico with six fluted columns and pilasters between shuttered windows on the sides. Both stages of the cupola were also trimmed in grouped pilasters. The traditional ball and arrow topped the dome shaped roof. The courthouse was completed in 1849 at a cost of around $9,000.

The building sustained extensive damage during a tornado that struck St. Charles in February 1876, but was repaired and used until is was razed in 1903. In April of that year the court moved to the new courthouse located on "Clerk's Hill" above Second Street.




Court House, St. Charles, Missouri.




Emmaus Asylum, St. Charles, Missouri.




First Capitol Building, St. Charles, Missouri.

St. Charles was Missouri's capitol from 1820 to 1826. The First Capitol Building is located in the 200 block of North Main Street. It is shown after restoration.




County Jail, St. Charles, Missouri.

St. Charles was Missouri's capitol from 1820 to 1826. The First Capitol Building is located in the 200 block of North Main Street. It is shown after restoration.




St. Charles County Memorial Hall, Blanchette Park, St. Charles, MO.

Memorial Hall is located in Blanchette Park. The land for the park was acquired by the City of St. Charles in December of 1914. After the land was purchased Charles G. Kansteiner - City Clerk petitioned the City Council to name the property "Blanchette Park," in honor of Louis Blanchette the founder of the city.

On May 6, 1919, the State of Missouri General Assembly enacted a law that would provide a $1,000 grant to any county who added $250 toward construction a World War I memorial for veterans who died during that conflict.

In an effort to obtain funds for a war memorial, the Saint Charles - Loyal Order of Moose sponsored a picnic in Blanchette Park on Labor Day, 1919. The picnic netted $2,006.43. These funds combined with a $700 donation from the American Legion Post 312, the $1,000 grant and $17,500 from the park fund allowed for the construction of Memorial Hall.

Memorial Hall was dedicated on June 22, 1929. A bronze tablet bearing the names of those from St. Charles County who lost their lives during the "War to end all Wars" was placed on the building.

Memorial Hall was renovated and enlarged during 1988-89. In 1990 it was decided that a new plaque honoring veterans who died in World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam should be placed beside to old plaque.




County Old People's Home, St. Charles, MO

The building in the photo had several names during its almost 100 years of existence. It was known as the County Asylum, the County Poor House or Poor Farm and the County Old Peoples Home.

It was located on ten acres of land on Elm Point Road, now Elm Street. St. Charles County purchased the land in February of 1869. Buildings were constructed and among the early residents of the County Asylum were victims of the small pox epidemic that struck St. Charles in the late 1860s and early 1870s.

Several years later more acreage was purchased and the brick building pictured was built. Through the years it served as a poor farm, as an asylum for those the county court declared incompetent and as a nursing home for the elderly.

Newspaper articles from 1927 and 1929 describe the County Poor House's overcrowded conditions and the need to build an annex. A February 5, 1929 article from the Banner News states: "Herman Mutert, superintendent of the county farm is crying for more room, so that he can accommodate people sent there by the county court." A later paragraph states: "At one time the county house was considered an asylum for the mentally afflicted, but now it is gradually merging into an old folks' home. This is the character it will probably assume in a marked degree from this time forward. Whether we like it or not, St. Charles county must take care of its old folks who are too poor to provide for their own living." In January of 1930 there were 57 inmates in the home, 39 men and 18 women. They ranged in age from 23 to 88.

In 1953 the County Court decided to close the County Old People's Home and by September 30, 1953 all 22 inmates had been moved to private institutions. The brick building was subsequently dismantled.

In 1968 the St. Charles Jaycees began working for the development of a park on the site of the County Old Folks Home. In 1976 the facility was officially designated as Jaycee Park.




POST OFFICE, St. Charles, MO.




Enterance and Main Building St. Joseph's Hospital, St. Charles, MO.




City Water Tower.

In the early 1880s water mains were being laid and buildings erected for a municipal waterworks. Seeking the highest point in St. Charles for a water tower, a site was selected "at the west end of Clay Street near Lindenwood College."

The original tower was a wooden tank constructed on a brick base resting on a stone foundation. The old tower was replaced around the turn of the century (20th) with the brick structure pictured above.

The new tank was constructed of steel and enclosed in a red brick tower. The exterior of the tower was adorned with decorative columns connected by arches. A small circular window was placed in the center of each arch. The roof of the water tower was designed to channel rainwater into the tank and a decorative catwalk was built around the top of the tower.

The water tower was taken out of service in 1955 and Lindenwood University purchased it from the city in 1971 for $1.00. In the 1980s it was designated a landmark by the St. Charles Landmarks Preservation Board.

Lindenwood began restoration of the tower in 1997. The roof was re-pitched to stop the flow of water into the tank, steel beams supporting the catwalk were reinforced and painted and tuckpointing was done on the brick exterior. Restoration was completed in 1998 at a cost of $66,000.




City Waterworks, St. Charles, Missouri.

This photograph is dated 1909 and signed Goebel, indicating that it was taken by local photographer Rudolph Goebel. The waterworks plant was located on south Main Street adjacent to the Missouri River and the postcard shows the facility as it appeared in 1909.

Water service in St. Charles began as a private enterprise after a bond election to fund a city waterworks was defeated in April of 1880. In April of 1881 articles of association were filed for the St. Charles Water and Heating Company. Construction of the waterworks, water tower and the placement of fire hydrants was completed by December of 1881 and the system tested by February 1882.

By 1900 it was decided that a new, publicly owned waterworks was needed to supply safe water to St. Charles residents. An April 1900 vote confirmed public support and at a special meeting on July 30, 1901 the Waterworks and Fire Protection Committee recommended the purchase of land located at 12 South Main Street for the Municipal Waterworks powerhouse and settling basins. The property was purchased from the heirs of Henry Benne's estate for $817.50.

The new city owned waterworks, pictured above, began operating in 1903.


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