Riverview comprises the extreme northern section of the City, bounded by the Mississippi River to the East, the City limits to the West, Chain of Rocks Road to the South, with the Northern boundary lying on a third of a mile north of I-270.

Columbia Bottoms road, now known as Riverview Drive, was laid out about 1830 as a farm-to-market road leading to Baden and then St. Louis. Traffic from a farming area of more than 100 square miles in northern St. Louis County followed this road and others through the present-day Riverview and Baden area to reach the St. Louis market. Land divisions in the Baden-Riverview area were originally created from a series of large land tracts, or survey, which represented American confirmations of the early French and Spanish land grants made in the late eighteenth century. Eventually, these surveys were subdivided into farming areas in the early 1850s. The Riverview section of the land extended from the river westwardly beyond the present City limits. Major landowners in the area included William Carr Lane (first mayor of St. Louis), Nicholas A. Destrehan, Samuel B. Wiggins, and Amadee Valle. Residential construction began again in the southern end of Riverview in the early 1870s, and again in the early 1890s, coinciding with the construction of the new Chain of Rocks waterworks. An electric trolley line was operated by the Water Division from Baden to Chain of Rocks for several years. Today this line operates as a freight hauling line with connection to the Burlington Railroad.

Characteristics

Riverview acts as a thoroughfare connecting the northern tip of the City with North County. No major institutions are located within the its boundaries. The area does, however, provide miscellaneous private uses on the riverfront, as well as parks and a golf course. The area is located on a high bluff overlooking the Mississippi River and is rather heavily wooded. There exists little residential development within the whole of Riverview. The residential development that does exist is located along Riverview Drive. The housing stock consists primarily of single-family dwellings, of which 90 percent are owner-occupied.

The First Church of God is located in the area. A number of industrial businesses use the area along the Mississippi Levee. At the northernmost section of Riverview is the North Shore Golf Club. Also located within the neighborhood is the Riverview Park, which offers several acres for outdoor recreation. Riverview Park is located within the Mississippi flood plain, extending from the northernmost city limits to its southernmost limits. Also located within the park are facilities that include a fishing pond, a boat launch, and a parking lot. The Riverfront Trail, a recent addition to the area, is a developing six mile recreational greenway that offers an ideal location for hiking and biking for urban residents. Chain of Rocks Park was acquired in 1893 by the Water Division. In 1910, the 29.76 acre park was landscaped and to this day is one of the only city parks not under the jurisdiction of the Park Department. The Riverview Drive Improvement Association is the acting neighborhood organization for the area.

The North Shore Country Club is under reconstruction, with beautification and accessibility efforts underway. There is also a new Motomart service station being built across from the country club.