St. Louis is a city with a story to tell, but locals oftentimes forget that. The city dates back to 1764, when a 13-year-old scout helped a land grant recipient select a plot of land for a fur trading post. Since then, the city has changed dramatically. The city continues to evolve and change, a fact which we are reminded of when we gaze upon the entrancing photos of a building that sat abandoned for decades.
Take a step back in time into the Arcade-Wright Building.
Thomas Hawk/Flickr
bill.streeter/Flickr The Wright Building was constructed in 1907. In 1913, the Arcade was added to the existing building, wrapping around it and engulfing it in splendid architecture.
The intricate Gothic features of the Arcade delighted its earliest shoppers.
bill.streeter/Flickr
Thomas Hawk/Flickr When the building opened, the city was industrializing and becoming crowded. A shopping center was much needed, and the stunning rib-vaulted shopping arcade or “interior street” of this building provided the space for just that that.
Originally considered to be a “city within a city,” the building’s interior street stretched all the way from Olive to Pine.
Thomas Hawk/Flickr
Thomas Hawk/Flickr This massive building, inspired by the galleries of Milan and Naples, housed both shopping and offices. Its splendor attracted many visitors for many years, but all that activity eventually ceased.
The building, however, was abandoned in 1978.
bill.streeter/Flickr
And so it sat seemingly frozen in time for decades.
Thomas Hawk/Flickr
What was once the Missouri Court’s printing office no longer buzzed with activity.
Thomas Hawk/Flickr
Mr. Nixter/Flickr The office sat crumbling and its linotype machines sat rusting with the rest of the artifacts of the era.
Remnants of the past littered the grounds, offering a glimpse into entire professions that were seemingly abandoned.
Thomas Hawk/Flickr
Thomas Hawk/Flickr Urban explorers reported that there was even an old optometrist’s office, holding the remains of lenses that appeared to have been still in progress at the time of abandonment.
Throughout it all, the spectacular 35-foot-high arcade has remained an architectural gem.
Thomas Hawk/Flickr
Thomas Hawk/Flickr Its architecture remained stunning, despite years of decay, and modern investors and renovators recently realized that.
In 2015, a $118 million renovation preserved the building, creating 282 apartments and breathing new life into its once-neglected architecture.
Arcade Apartments Website
Today, the building’s 16 stories include apartments and the downtown campus of Webster University.
Arcade Apartments Website
Empowered with new life, this local landmark is once again warm and beautiful.
Arcade Apartments Website
This stunning building has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 2003, and now it has a new life breathed into it. Its beauty has been restored, but these haunting images of the past remind us of what St. Louis’ inner city once was.
Thomas Hawk/Flickr
bill.streeter/Flickr
The Wright Building was constructed in 1907. In 1913, the Arcade was added to the existing building, wrapping around it and engulfing it in splendid architecture.
When the building opened, the city was industrializing and becoming crowded. A shopping center was much needed, and the stunning rib-vaulted shopping arcade or “interior street” of this building provided the space for just that that.
This massive building, inspired by the galleries of Milan and Naples, housed both shopping and offices. Its splendor attracted many visitors for many years, but all that activity eventually ceased.
Mr. Nixter/Flickr
The office sat crumbling and its linotype machines sat rusting with the rest of the artifacts of the era.
Urban explorers reported that there was even an old optometrist’s office, holding the remains of lenses that appeared to have been still in progress at the time of abandonment.
Its architecture remained stunning, despite years of decay, and modern investors and renovators recently realized that.
Arcade Apartments Website
Love local history? You will love these historic neighborhoods.
OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article.
