40 South News

The Rise The Fall From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 7, 1997 Shortest post I’ve ever made. Doug Houser       October 16, 2022

Brentwood resident Barry Williams recently began promoting the naming of a new street in Brentwood after the city’s founder Thomas Madden. The street will be the entrance to the new Brentwood Park, south of Manchester in the area currently being developed. Former mayor Karen Kintz, who is a descendant of Thomas Madden, contacted Mayor David […]

In my last post, I reprinted an email from reader Melissa in which she posed the question: Were our buildings “built plain or became plain over time?  I gave her four examples which you can review here. Another very good example of how a building may change dramatically is that of the first Maplewood Bank […]

Recently I received the following email from a reader that started me thinking about the disappeared and still disappearing architectural details that have occupied much of my time for the last decade-and-a-half. Hi Doug,  I walk my dogs all around Maplewood and study the different styles of architecture. Most of the older (1906) homes like […]

Brentwood resident Barry Williams last month sent a letter to Brentwood Mayor David Dimmitt suggesting a way to honor Brentwood’s founding family, the Maddens. He says that nothing in Brentwood bears the family’s name since the city stripped it from the annual Maddenfest festival. Maddenfest began in In 1979 when Brentwood celebrated the 60th Anniversary […]

The Maplewood Jack in the Box closed permanently on Monday. That’s according to an employee on the site, signs in the windows, and Google. The location, at 7520 Manchester Road, is owned by Foodmaker Inc. It was built in 1970 according to county records.

An online petition to attempt to stop the forced sale of multiple businesses in Brentwood has garnered 1,877 signatures as of Sunday, October 2. Green Street Real Estate Ventures, assisted by the city of Brentwood, intends to purchase all the properties along a three quarter-mile  stretch of Manchester Road for redevelopment. The petition: The developer […]

Maplewood Richmond Heights Middle School held its annual cardboard boat regatta, and shared a YouTube video of the event.

This past September the 7th, I had the great pleasure to meet the wonderful folks that make up the St. Louis contingent of the CORO fellowship of 2022-23.  If you are not familiar with the CORO programs maybe this excerpt from Wikipedia will help. The Coro Fellows Program in Public Affairs, the organization’s premier fellowship, […]

MAPLEWOOD, Mo. – Saint Louis Closet Co. donated $3,125 to Connections to Success through their Closets for a Cause giveback effort. These funds will go toward the nonprofit’s Personal and Professional Development Class, which provides job readiness training, mock interviews, connections with employers, professional clothes, and transportation assistance. This amount is a direct result of a percentage of […]

Carl’s Drive-In owner has plans for a burger and ‘entertainment destination’ in Winghaven, St Louis Magazine reports. KSDK — Maplewood pool becomes a ‘dog dish’ one day each year – KSDK Sauce — Locoz Tacoz Taqueria is opening a brick-and-mortar in Maplewood this winter St. Louis Magazine — Carl’s Drive-In owner wants to create a […]

A few weeks back, I made a post with the title, “Everything Ziegler and a Bit of Fischer.” Well, thanks to the generosity of Brad Ziegler, by the time I had posted everything Ziegler, I was out of time and energy so I promised to post my Fischer material in a follow up.  This is […]

Richmond Heights resident Richard Fister has died at 90, and more in the news. KMOV — Shots fired in Richmond Heights neighborhood during car break-ins – KMOV KSDK — 22-year-old is arrested in connection to Valley Park dispensary break-in – KSDK St. Louis Post-Dispatch — Richard Fister Obituary (1931 – 2022) – Kirkwood, MO – […]

Tonight (September 19) crews should be reopening most of Manchester Road on both sides of Hanley Road near the Black Creek bridge, starting at about 9 p.m., MoDOT Communications Specialist Andrew Gates reported today. At 9 p.m., crews will reopen both westbound lanes, one eastbound through lane and the eastbound left turn lane.  The remaining […]

Maplewood’s oldest home, known as Woodside, built in 1848, is being listed for $899,000 by Coldwell Banker. A Richmond Heights couple bought the house in 2016 and has renovated it throughout. Its address is 2200 Bredell Avenue. See the listing, including photos here.   See also: Maplewood History: Pre-Restoration Images of Woodside Maplewood History: The […]

Does anyone out there remember Stewart, the sign painter?  I think of him every time I ride my bike past where he once had his shop on Yale. He had an old Studebaker pickup truck which was in very good condition.  I think it had a copper-colored paint job.  He painted a sign for me […]

A year or so ago, David Schlafly asked me to help to set up some sort of an exhibit about the history of Maplewood in The Bottleworks brewery of which he is part owner.  I agreed. I had a couple of meetings with some of the folks that worked there.  I thought we were on […]

After years of trying to find a developer for the empty lot on the southeast corner of Brentwood Boulevard and Clayton Road, there are now plans for a 10-story Tempo by Hilton Hotel, CityScene STL reports. The 210-room hotel would be the first “Tempo” branded hotel in St. Louis and the state of Missouri. CityScene […]

Early in 2017, I was invited by Luke Havel to meet with him and a man named Jim Fischer at the Stone Spiral Cafe.  Jim brought with him a box containing many historic items either related to Maplewood or to his family.  The box and contents, he gave to us.  I scanned everything and put […]

The business, Blissfully Popped, is coming to 7318 Manchester Road, according to the poster in the window. Blissfully Popped is on Instagram at @sbcandybuffets on Twitter at @_sbcandybuffets and on Facebook at @sbcandybuffets. Who is Sugary Bliss Candy Buffets? #candybuffets #stlmade #dessertbuffets #funfoodbuffets #wedding #babyshower #birthdayparty #bridalshowers #gourmetpopcorn #StLouis pic.twitter.com/3KSJKMMGNT — Sugary Bliss (@_Sbcandybuffets) April […]