Gateway Arch

St. Louis was founded by traders moving north and south on the river, by explorers and frontier families from the eastern states pushing restlessly west. It is a place that is neither northern nor southern, neither eastern nor western, but the one place that combines traits of all. It has been influenced by descendants of European colonists, by thousands of years of rich Native American culture which predated it and surrounded it, and by standing on the shadow line between the slave states and the free states. It has been both a destination and a gateway to other lands.

This is the place where a nation reached the great river and halted, staring across the water into wide, wild lands. In St. Louis, the United States ended and the wild began. So it was here that the citizens of the young United States streamed across and into the western territories, first with Lewis and Clark and then with countless others. It all began from a wide bend on the continent's mightiest river. This is where the United States discovered America. This is the Core of Discovery.

The nation's tallest monument at 630 feet, the Gateway Arch has beckoned visitors for more than 40 years with its iconic, awe-inspiring shape. The vision of renowned architect Eero Saarinen, the Gateway Arch commemorates Thomas Jefferson and St. Louis' role in the westward expansion of the United States. A visit to St. Louis isn't complete without standing at its base and playing professional photographer, and the view from the outside is only half of the experience.

Attractions within the Arch are the Journey to the Top, the Museum of Westward Expansion, educational programs, two movies and shopping.

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