ARCHITECTURALLY INTERESTING - THE HISTORIC WELLSTON STATION IN THE CITY OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI

THEN:

NOW:

HISTORY OF THE BUILDING - FROM THE NATIONAL HISTORIC REGISTER APPLICATION:

The Wellston Station, located at 6111 Martin Luther King Drive (formerly Easton Avenue and St. Charles Rock Road) in the City of St. Louis, Missouri, is locally significant under National Register of Historic Places Criterion A for Transportation and under Criterion C in the area of Architecture. The station was built by the United Railways Company in 1909 at a time in which the streetcar had replaced the electric railway as the dominant form of mass transit in St. Louis. The new station was the largest waiting station in the system, and one of only three such stations sited at transfer points between major lines. The design e~nployedth e prevalent Craftsman style to create a luxurious and efficiently-arranged station with a spacious waiting room, a store and covered tracks. Today, Wellston Station is the only waiting station still standing. The opening of the new streetcar line and station on Easton Avenue in 1909 signified the triumph of the streetcar over the electric railway and the growing importance of the Wellston commercial district, which straddled the line between Wellston and the city of St. Louis. The station was built to serve the so-called Wellston Loop streetcar loop, which became one of the busiest streetcar transfer points in the country by 1940 and which was the termination point for the last streetcar line in St. Louis to close.  For the complete application, visit:  http://www.dnr.mo.gov/shpo/nps-nr/07000377.pdf.

COMMENTARY:

The #32 Wellston Streetcar line began running in 1901 from the City Limits along Easton to Franklin and then to 3rd Street in Downtown St. Louis.  Wellston Station was built by United Railways in 1909 for $6,000.00 and served as a connection hub for four streetcar lines.  It later served as a bus station until the building was closed in July 28, 1963.  The building has had a commercial tenant occupying the front space until the present day.  The office space on the second floor has been blocked and is no longer accessible.