17 Staggering Photos Of An Abandoned Shopping Mall Hidden In St. Louis
By Nikki Rhoades|Published December 18, 2017
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Nikki Rhoades
Author
Nikki is a lifelong Ohioan with a love for literature. She holds a Bachelor's Degree from the University of Akron and has enjoyed publishing her written work since 2007. She has a love of travel and does so frequently, though she believes that home is where the heart is — she continues to work in and around Cleveland as a digital content specialist to this day, working on everything from commercial scripts and social media posts to grassroots marketing initiatives.
St. Louis is a city with a story to tell, but locals oftentimes forget that. The city dates back to 1764, when a 13-year-old scout helped a land grant recipient select a plot of land for a fur trading post. Since then, the city has changed dramatically. The city continues to evolve and change, a fact which we are reminded of when we gaze upon the entrancing photos of a building that sat abandoned for decades.
Take a step back in time into the Arcade-Wright Building.
The Wright Building was constructed in 1907. In 1913, the Arcade was added to the existing building, wrapping around it and engulfing it in splendid architecture.
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The intricate Gothic features of the Arcade delighted its earliest shoppers.
When the building opened, the city was industrializing and becoming crowded. A shopping center was much needed, and the stunning rib-vaulted shopping arcade or "interior street" of this building provided the space for just that that.
Originally considered to be a "city within a city," the building's interior street stretched all the way from Olive to Pine.
This massive building, inspired by the galleries of Milan and Naples, housed both shopping and offices. Its splendor attracted many visitors for many years, but all that activity eventually ceased.
Urban explorers reported that there was even an old optometrist's office, holding the remains of lenses that appeared to have been still in progress at the time of abandonment.
Throughout it all, the spectacular 35-foot-high arcade has remained an architectural gem.
This stunning building has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 2003, and now it has a new life breathed into it. Its beauty has been restored, but these haunting images of the past remind us of what St. Louis’ inner city once was.
