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Page 23 text:
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Z8 QlfLI tA0lfL58 Mount Vernon takes pride in being the home of George Washington, as does Philadel- phia in its Independence Hall. St. Louis can take justifiable pride in the old Courthouse. Rich in history, crowned with dignity and distinction, the Courthouse has been the nucleus of St. Louis' political and judicial life for many a day. In July, 1840, Sergeant S. Prentiss, a noted orator of that period, held an audience of five thousand spellbound for three or more hours. In November, 1846, the renowned Dred Scott case was tried. This case, as you probably know, was one of the most instrumental factors in the rise of sympathy for slave emancipation. In this same year, 1846, a group of volunteer soldiers assembled to contribute their aid toward defeating Mexico in the Mexi- can War. Again, 1846 proves to be an eventful year in that the honorable Henry Clay conducted a land sale at the east front door, on what is now the Fourth Street side. One thousand delegates, representing fourteen states, assembled at the National Railroad Con- vention, which met in the Old Courthouse in 1849 when the distinguished and respected Stephen A. Douglas was elected Chairman. In 1859 Ulysses S. Grant, not yet a military celebrity but a budding engineer, freed his only slave in this very building, and here, too, he mhde formal application for the office of County Engineer. The Courthouse is laid after the plan of a Greek cross. That is, there are four wings or entrances which meet in a common center, the rotunda. The building proper is two and one-half stories high with a basement and is of heavy stone construction, the outer walls being two feet thick. Two Greek porticos, constituting the east and west entrances, are supported by six massive stone columns. The elaborate Huting in these columns, typi- cally Ionic, lends a very impressive appearance. The north portico, of similar pattern, is supported by four columns. The main dome, consisting of a heavy wood framework covered with cast iron sheeting, rises one hundred and fifty feet above the street level. A smaller dome, superimposed thereon, rises to a height of one hundred and eighty-five feet. It is interesting to note that the dome of the capitol building in Washington, D. C., is pat- terned after the Courthouse dome. There are evidences within the building of once fine woodwork, as can be seen on the stairway in the rotunda. The murals of Western History painted within the dome by Carl Wimar still show through the dust of years. If the Courthouse were given the power of speech, what tales it could relate! For there, not so long ago, as the span of time is measured, stood a shipment of slavcs, bought and sold as so much merchandise. Over there President Cleveland reigned as host, amia- bly and hospitably greeting the guests to his reception. How easily one can visualize a steamer docking at the levee, and the stevedores and finely clad merchants crowding about to unload the cargo and to exchange bids. Horse cars, wagons, surreys, busily moving from place to place! And a traffic jam at Broadway and Market caused by a horse shying at one of those new fangled horseless carriages ! RICHARD BROMLEY 17 Phologrsph by Piaget Studios
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