The Gateway to the West has fallen on hard times. Since the end of the war, the exodus of inner city whites is clearer in St. Louis than anywhere else in the country. The population has dropped by almost one hundred thousand, and the already strong racial disparities have grown wider.

However, one would have to be a fool to write the Mound City off. Home to the prestigious colleges that are Washington University and Saint Louis University, St. Louis is a hub of education in the Great Plains. Its long history has left its mark, monuments and commemorations galore hail the stories of great pioneers and the old French traders who first founded the city. Industry remains strong here, sitting on the fringes of the great Steel Belt.

St. Louis is the heart of the Midwest. Arteries like the Mississippi and Missouri divulge here, strengthening the legacy of trade and pioneering like no other city in America.