County of site: Independent City of St. Louis
Location of gate: Grand Blvd, St. Louis
Architect: George I. Barnett
Built in: 1872
Artist: Unknown German Sculptor
Founder: Unknown from Berlin, Germany
Restored in 1995
1995 Contractor: David L. Shaw
1995 Architect: W. Phillip Cotton, Jr.
Grand Ave. Entrance sign provided by: Stupp Bros. Bridge & Iron Co. Foundation
Restoration funds provided by: The Robert P. Stupp Family, The Spoehrer Foundation, Clifford Willard Gaylord Foundation, Grand South Grand House Tours, Friends of Tower Grove Park
"Tower Grove Park encompasses a long, narrow rectangular area of
277 acres located in the south central section of St. Louis,
Missouri. It is bounded by Magnolia Avenue on the north, Grand
Boulevard on the east, Arsenal Street on the south and Kingshighway Boulevard on the west.
"The park was designed by James Gurney, Jr. (1831-1920) an Englishman whom Henry Shaw, donor of the land, brought to St. Louis for that purpose. Mr. Gurney, who had been head of the aquatic section of the Royal Gardens at Kew, remained in St. Louis as park superintendent afterwards.
"Most of the buildings, the main entrance on Grand Boulevard, and the bases of the three 30 foot high bronze statues were designed by George I. Barnett (1815 - 1898). Barnett was an English-born architect who was probably the most distinguished representative of his profession in Missouri in the nineteenth century; he received several other important commissions from Henry Shaw." ~ NRHP Nomination Form
Tower Grove Park Map
"Two gateways for carriages, exit and entrance, about eight feet apart, and forty feet distant on each side is a gate for pedestrians. From the pedestrian gates, a stone wall with a coping of dressed limestone supporting an iron railing of graceful design, curves outward to the line of the street, and terminates against a column of cut limestone blocks resting upon a base of red granite blocks, and rising to a height of nearly thirty feet, with moldings and cornice of stone, surmounting which is a resting lion, of zinc.
The pedestrian entrances have double gate-ways. On each side of the gate-ways stand a stone pier, with cornice, and above it a ball of red granite. The double carriage gate-ways lie between two massive piers composed of oblong blocks of dressed limestone resting upon a base of granite, with handsome moldings and cornices, surmounted by griffins facing each other.
"The construction of the entrance we have briefly described was a difficult and expensive piece of work, as a considerable amount of filling-in (some 30,000 square yards of earth were moved!) had to be done in order to effect a satisfactory grade. The stonework of the piers and walls was executed in the most careful and artistic manner, with a view to permanence and beauty. The Comptroller of the park [Henry Shaw] designed this entrance; the iron work was executed by Messrs. Shickle & Harrison of St. Louis.
The metallic figures ornamenting this entrance were executed at Berlin, . . . imported for the ornamentation of the gate-ways by the Board of Commissioners. The lions couchant are particularly worthy of notice. They are modeled on the celebrated weeping lions of Antonio Canova (for the tomb of Pope Clement XIII in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome), and the expression and pose are strikingly natural. Both the lion and griffin sculptures installed in 1872 were cast in zinc" ~ Tower Grove Park
"The metallic figures ornamenting this entrance were executed at Berlin, . . . imported for the ornamentation of the gate-ways by the Board of Commissioners. The lions couchant are particularly worthy of notice. They are modeled on the celebrated weeping lions of Antonio Canova (for the tomb of Pope Clement XIII in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome), and the expression and pose are strikingly natural. Both the lion and griffin sculptures installed in 1872 were cast in zinc." ~ Rome of the West
Plaque One:
THE GRAND ENTRANCE
TO
TOWER GROVE PARK
Designed by Henry Shaw & Completed in 1872
Restored in 1995 with the generous support of
The Spoehrer Foundation
and
Clifford Willard Gaylord Foundation Friends of Tower Grove Park
Grand South Grand House Tours Robert and Anne Stupp
and many other contributors
Plaque Two:
GRAND AVENUE ENTRANCE
Tower Grove Park
Restored 1995
Contractor - David L. Shaw
Architect - W. Phillip Cotton, Jr.
Plaque Three:
GRAND AVENUE ENTRANCE SIGN
funded by
STUPP BROS. BRIDGE & IRON CO. FOUNDATION
and
THE FAMILY OF ROBERT P. STUPP
SUMMER 2001