The Gateway Arch in St. Louis was completed on this day in 1965. The stainless-steel monument, which looms over the western bank of the Mississippi River, tops out at 630 feet. It’s hard to understand the scale of the thing without seeing it in person. From a worm’s eye view, it appears unfathomably tall, even though it’s less than half the height of the Empire State Building.
A nationwide competition in 1947-1948 had solicited proposals for a monument commemorating the 1803 Louisiana Purchase and St. Louis’s role as a key supply stop for settlers heading west. Architect Eero Saarinen’s submission won largely because it was deemed more beautiful and evocative than the others.
The monument was impressively affordable, costing under $15 million in total, as well as sturdy, having been designed to withstand earthquakes and strong winds. Millions visit the park annually, some of whom catch a ride on the internal tram that allows visitors to gaze up to 30 miles out across the landscape.
You can read more about the arch at Architectural Digest.
Oct. 28 is, incidentally, a day of two major U.S. monuments dedicated to the mass movement of peoples; the Statue of Liberty was officially unveiled and dedicated on the same date in 1886.
