Two original captions: "Jefferson Barracks, showing the old Guard House. Besides many other incidents, amusing and tragic, the old Guard House was the genesis of the new Jefferson Barracks. Spurred by reports of low morale in the Army during its longest period of peace from 1865 to 1898, a St. Louis newspaper reporter enlisted, was assigned to the barracks, deserted, and kept his newspaper columns hot with the insides story of Army life. Besides a slight upping of allowances and promise of other reforms, the War Department inaugurated a rebuilding of Jefferson Barracks where the controversy was centered and within a decade had razed the historic quadrangle of limestone and substituted a new post of pressed brick." "The old guard house was the genesis of the "new" Jefferson Barracks of the 1900s. Spurred by stories of low morale at the Barracks, a reporter enlisted in the 1890s and then deserted. The natural course of events followed and soon his newspaper was publishing the inside story of the army life. Before long soldiers' pay was upped and many structures were rebuilt. The Spanish-American War further emphasized the need for modernization and by 1905 all but one of the old buildings had been replaced."
This directory contains an introduction entitled St. Louis in 1890 featuring population and business statistics followed by an index to advertisers and business headings, a street directory, a St. Louis City residential and business directory, and a city and county record listing civic and social institutions for the year 1890.
The eight volume of Gould's Blue Books, this directory contains the names of the most prominent householders and businesses in the city of St. Louis and suburban areas, as well as residents from Alton, Edwardsville, St. Charles and Carlinville for the year 1890. Residents and businesses are arranged alphabetically by name and street. In addition to the directory, it contains rosters of social clubs and instructions concerning proper etiquette.
"Samuel Cupples, who in 1851 established the firm which became the largest woodenware company in the United States, built this home at 3673 Pine in 1890, about which time was taken. The building is now in St. Louis University's well known 'Chouteau House.'"
Photograph of cargo and steamboats lining the Saint Louis levee in the 1890s. GRAND REPUBLIC (second) and BELLE OF CALHOUN, as well as the Anchor Line wharfboat are pictured. Eads Bridge in the background. Railroad tracks to the left.
Emil Boehl was a St. Louis photographer who primarily focused his camera on St. Louis streets, buildings, and locales. Born in Calvoerde, Germany, in 1839, Boehl immigrated to St. Louis in 1854. After serving in the Union Army during the Civil War, Boehl returned to St. Louis in 1864 and opened a photography studio with Lawrence Koenig that spring. With Koenig focusing on portraiture, Boehl became one of the most prolific St. Louis scenic photographers active in the latter half of the 19th Century. The Boehl/Koenig partnership lasted until 1897. Boehl retired from photography in 1919 and died later that year on the 12th of December.
The Emil Boehl Collection consists of three series. The collection contains images dating from 1850 to ca. 1906. The collection’s archival materials include photographic prints and negatives. According to historians Peter E. Palmquist and Thomas R. Kailbourn, Boehl’s career was from 1864 to 1919, and he was known to sell prints of Thomas Easterly’s daguerreotypes. In light of those facts, some dates in the Boehl Collection may be labelled incorrectly and/or some images may not be Boehl’s.
This photograph shows a cobblestone cross-street fitted with a gas powered street light and a series of telephone wires. In the mid-ground there are two horse drawn carriages, one is an enclosed passenger carriage and the other has an open top and is being driven by two workmen. In the left portion of the photograph there is a large pile of cobblestones and a steam locomotive. The locomotive is identified on the photograph as "engine 81 of the Terminal Railroad Association". The background of the image contains a tall smokestack and several large factory buildings. The buildings include a Simmons Hardware Co. Warehouse, a Western Electric Company building, and several industrial sites.