Area Improvements

Famous widely published view of Soulard Market, circa 1919. The old market building still stood then, as well as now several sheds. The small flounder building at right was the Market master's office, apparently. The large crowd is attracted to a brass band playing on a temporary bandstand, center. Notice the rutted, dirt streets and the smoky pall in the air. The event in progress was an annual springcelebration. Courtesy of Soulard Market.

The next stage of the Market's history occurred around 1909-11, as the "City Beautiful" urban planning movement took hold of Saint Louis. The thought was that the civilizing effect of parks, greenspace, and community facilities would influence for the better the alarmingly bad behavior of the immigrant lower classes, such as those folks living in "the older wards".

The City Beautiful movement transformed the area around Soulard Market. The other two half-blocks just south of Julia Soulard's donation were earmarked as the site for a new park.

Dozens of crowded, pre-Civil War row houses and tenements were condemned, seized, and razed, allowing for some open space. A new library, partially financed by steel magnate Andrew Carnegie, was built just across from the new park space. A public bath stood across 7th Street from the market; now even more than before, the Market area served as a focal point for the surrounding neighborhoods. (By the way, Pontiac Park, seven blocks south of the Market was also a City Beautiful creation, but that project is a whole other story.)

In spring 1911 a revival celebration was held to commemorate all these improvements. And in subsequent years, various promotional parades and other events were hosted to draw additional business. In the 1920's only two public markets remained in the city. Their function was still important for both vendors and customers, but was bucking a societal obsession with cleanliness and purity. A 1919 photo shows the messy vitality of the place.