In 1907, wealthy St. Louis attorney Issac Lionberger wrote an effusive letter to his sister Mary about the grand, Georgian-style house that he and his wife, the former Louise (“Lutie”) Shepley, had just built at 37 Westmoreland Place. Like other affluent St. Louisians, they were moving west, leaving behind their previous home at 3630 Grandel Square off North Grand Avenue, close to the mansion of Lionberger’s parents on Vandeventer Place. That once-splendid neighborhood, today the midtown area of St. Louis, was growing shabbier and smokier - so the magnificent private streets near Forest Park, site of the 1904 World’s Fair, beckoned irresistibly. As Lionberger told his sister, his wife and children were overjoyed with the change.

Mary Lionberger, then on a journey to Egypt, must have felt intrigued. Only five years later, after the death of her parents, she moved from Vandeventer Place to her own newly built Tudor Revival mansion at 30 Westmoreland, across the street from her brother. Two Shepley brothers of Louise and a Lionberger nephew also built houses nearby, as did a whole clutch of prominent lawyers, bankers and businessmen. When Mary died in 1938 at age eighty, she was still living in her Westmoreland mansion. In 1948, Issac died at ninety-four - and just as he had predicted, he was still enjoying the “comfortable serenity” of his beloved home.

Reprinted with permission of Reedy Press from Renaissance - A History of the Central West End by Candace O’Connor

PREPARING A PRIVATE PLACE

Just a decade before Isaac wrote to his sister, Westmoreland Place was only an idea amongst a small group of developers who thought the upper class of St. Louis might be feeling a bit restless in their current neighborhoods. These developers knew that as neighborhoods grew and became more crowded, more polluted, or unfashionable, those with the means to move in St. Louis tended to do so. So they took a gamble - one that, while ridiculed initially by others in St. Louis, would pay off tremendously in a short time.  

To attract the right kind of buyers who were willing to pay top dollar, the developers knew they had to build a “private place.” At the time, the private place concept defined St. Louis’s most exclusive neighborhoods but was relatively unknown to the rest of the nation.  Zoning regulations were uncommon, so anyone purchasing a home may have found themselves quickly surrounded by commercial establishments. In contrast, a private place had common ground owned by the residents, not by the city. As a result, deed restrictions allowing only single-family homes could be insisted upon. City leaders did not object to the concept as infrastructure such as lighting, sidewalks, roads, and sewers were paid for by the developers and maintenance transferred to the property owners. A private place ensured a neighborhood would stand the test of time and remain a comfortable place to live for generations of families.

The first known private place in St. Louis was Lucas Place since demolished. It was conceived and designed by the master surveyor and civil engineer, Julius Pitzman.  Mr. Pitzman, often considered “the Father of the Private Place,” likely looked to his European birthplace for inspiration.  In Europe, captains of commerce and industry often lived on private streets behind iron gates. With a focus on controlling traffic and creating a peaceful park-like setting, Pitzman’s private places would not be subjected to the noxious smells, noise, or lack of building standards often found on city-owned streets. 

Before designing Westmoreland Place and the adjacent Portland Place, Mr. Pitzman had already designed most of the cities’ private places including Benton Place, Vandeventer Place, Kingsbury Place, and Washington Terrace. He had also served as the master architect of Forest Park.

Knowing that Mr. Pitzman would be the designer, the developers began to search for land to create “the grandest private place design yet”. 

The desired tract was initially part of the Cabanne Dairy Farm and was adjacent to Forest Park. However, in 1871 it had been sold to Mr. Griswold, a retired railroad lawyer who had moved to St. Louis with his wife, Maria, to retire and pursue his hobby of raising cattle. While an agrarian lifestyle was his passion, Mr. Griswold knew a good deal when he saw one. So, when he was approached by the developers to purchase his 78 acres of land for $400,000 (a little over $10 million dollars today), he smartly agreed. In comparison, thirteen years earlier Forest Park’s 1,370 acres sold for $800,000. On May 14, 1887, the purchase from Mr. Griswold was completed and recorded. This tract of land would eventually become Westmoreland Place, Portland Place, and, the 5000-5100 block of Lindell Boulevard.  At this noteworthy sale price, many respected St. Louis businessmen thought the developers had been swindled and would never recoup their investment. These naysayers would be proven wrong shortly. 

THE FOREST PARK ADDITION

Capitalizing on their prime location directly adjacent to this park, often referred to as the “Jewel of St. Louis,” the developers called their site the Forest Park Addition and their organization the Forest Park Improvement Association. They even hired the landscape architect for Forest Park, Maximillian G. Kern, to landscape the central parkways of their development.  Banking on name recognition and advertising the neighborhood as an extension of the park, the developers were ready to begin building one of the finest private places St. Louisans had ever seen.   

With Pitzman retained for the design and Kern for the landscaping, development commenced.  Roads and lots were laid out.  Sewers, gas and water pipes were installed.  Westmoreland Place lay to the south, nearer Forest Park, and Portland Place to the north.  Lake Street, which ran north and south connected the two streets.  A large median that ran east and west down the middle of each street was landscaped with trees and shrubbery. While other private places had a single impressive entrance and exit point, Westmoreland and Portland Place had gate houses built by some of St. Louis’s most famous architects, that stood sentinel at each end of Westmoreland and Portland Place. They were erected to allow residents to easily exit their respective street from either end, but also to restrict access to non-residents.  With no expense spared, by 1888 the foundation of Westmoreland Place and Portland Place was built and the sale of lots could begin. 

Initially, the sale of lots was slow, but when it picked up, purchasing lots on Westmoreland and Portland Place was a lively proposition.  Although one of the goals of a private place was to avoid speculation it was unavoidable, and some investors bought and sold lots with no intention of living on either street.  A few, desiring larger lots, would buy three to divide into two.  As the years progressed, homeowners even purchased adjacent or nearby lots as investments or for their adult children. 

By 1895, the parkways, gatehouses, and infrastructure were complete. Since then, the gatehouses have been featured on numerous postcards and served as the inspiration for the almost identical gates constructed at Westmoreland Place in Los Angeles. At that time, twenty-two houses had been built and all the lots sold.  (With all shareholders paid, the Forest Park Improvement Association was officially dissolved.) It is estimated that single lots sold for an average of $12,000.  With 106 lots on Westmoreland Place and Portland Place and 27 on Lindell, it is probable that the original twelve shareholders doubled their investment within a short eight years. 

Strict indentures outlined the rules regarding governance of each place. Separate trustees were required for each street and would be bound to ensure the streets, services, and properties were well-maintained for all to enjoy. The earliest indentures even included rules on the type of coal that could be burnt to avoid polluting the air and required residents to ensure their front stairs were scrubbed bi-weekly. At the time, some of the regulations may have seemed unnecessary (such as that no building could be used for business purposes or leased to more than one family). However, these original indentures actually helped preserve the neighborhood less than a century later when the surrounding Central West End neighborhood went through a dramatic downturn. 

As for the homes, while the indentures specified a minimum price of $8,000 for a new residence, the architectural style was at the homeowner’s discretion. Over 24 architectural firms were retained for design. Many were premiere architecture firms whose designs are still known and recognized nationally including Eames & Young, Peabody, Stearns & Ferber, W. Albert Swasey, and James P. Jamison. Although the style of homes varied, the quality of the work did not with the vast majority of the homes still standing over a century later. 

FROM PASTURES TO PALACES

While “it is impossible to classify many of the residential designs on Portland and Westmoreland places” the “houses can be placed into relatively broad traditions of architecture”. Initial home designs were of the American Queen Anne style that was popular from 1880 to 1910 with its distinctive asymmetrical silhouettes, decorative woodwork, terra cotta or timber framing, and complex rooflines. This includes the oldest house on Westmoreland, #7, with a construction permit issued in February 1890. Examples of Richardson Romanesque style soon followed. The Richardson style was a uniquely American style with obvious European influences, as the founder studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris. With rounded arches, heavy stonework, and a weighty appearance, these homes are easily distinguished from other architectural styles on Westmoreland and Portland Place.  Other popular styles included the Classical Revival styles of Beaux-Arts and Georgian Revival.  Beaux-Arts architecture seems more prevalent on the two streets with its grand columns, decorative embellishments, and symmetrical design that is reminiscent of architectural elements in Rome or Paris. However, Georgian Revival homes, with their more horizontal vs. vertical appearance, do exist, especially those built after the 1920s. Many believe that the Westmoreland and Portland Place architects were inspired by one another. For example, “short third floor windows and stone swags” while not widely used outside these enclaves, were commonly included on the architecture within. The majority of the homes were built from 1890 to 1920. Another round of homebuilding occurred during the 1930s and a few more homes were built into the 1940s and the early 1960s. While most homes remain standing, ten homes have been lost over the years. One to fire, but most were deliberately demolished in the 1930s and 1940s either because they were too large and couldn’t find a buyer or because the cost of maintaining the home was insurmountable. Today, there are 45 homes on Westmoreland Place and 44 on Portland Place. In 1974, almost 100 years after the idea of Westmoreland Place and Portland Place was conceived, the entire neighborhood was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

THE FIRST RESIDENTS

The first homeowners were a veritable “who’s who” of St. Louis.  Several of the residents were members of an influential group called the “Big Cinch” headed by the Mayor of St. Louis and eventual Governor of Missouri, David Francis. The group was purported to have controlled the economic and political development of St. Louis at the time. Westmoreland Place and Portland Place were home to many well-known and powerful leaders of that era, including Charles Stix, founder of Stix, Baer, and Fuller department store; Edward Faust, second vice-president for brewer Anheuser-Busch; and shoe manufacturer George Warren Brown. Many homeowners represented various corporations within St. Louis, and business deals were brokered amongst neighbors frequently. 

 Social life was equally important to the earliest residents. Elaborate charity balls, debutante coming-out parties, and weddings were often held in the third-floor ballrooms of the homes on the two streets. The neighborhood’s gentlemen belonged to multiple private clubs including the St. Louis Commercial Club, the University Club, and the Racquet Club. Literary groups, garden clubs, teas, charitable organizations, and suffragette meetings filled in the social calendars for the ladies.  Even the neighborhood children had their own clubs including a stamp club, an athletic club, a debating club, and a gun club. 

The early residents of these private places also made their mark on their nearest neighbor, Forest Park. As St. Louis’s elite moved westward and established themselves in the then suburbs of St. Louis, they tended to erect civic institutions in their wake. For example, the residents of Vandeventer Place in Midtown helped to create the St. Louis Symphony and Kiel Opera House.  Later, when former Vandeventer Place residents or children of Vandeventer Place moved to Westmoreland Place and Portland Place, they banded together to help found other cultural institutions such as the Municipal Opera Company (the “Muny”), the St. Louis Art Museum, and the Missouri History Museum. 

Neighborhood children attended private schools like Mary Institute for Girls, Country Day School for Boys, City House, and Rossman - some of which were founded by parents on Westmoreland and Portland Place.

Early on, equestrian jaunts and horse-drawn carriage rides for the entire family ambled down the streets and made their way to Forest Park for residents to enjoy the scenery or travel to other fashionable streets to visit friends or relatives.  Delightfully, even today, one can find horses trotting on their way to the park, or the Claytonshire Coaching Club parading through the streets once each year.  

Over the years, as residents aged, the children of the original homeowners remained close friends, business associates, fraternity brothers, and sorority sisters. They married each other, joined the same country clubs and churches, attended the same private schools, and, of course, bought homes on Westmoreland Place and Portland Place as desirable residences became available. Traditions continued, enabling first-time purchasers to feel the pride and privilege of ownership as well as the acceptance of those they were joining. 

THE “CARETAKERS”

While times and fashion inevitably changed over the generations so did those who lived and live on Westmoreland Place. The makeup of the residents became more diverse but remained close-knit. This general camaraderie felt among the residents would also serve them well when the surrounding Central West End went through prosperity and downturns.

In the early 1960s, the Central West End went through a downturn, and many residents began to move out of the area. It could be said that those who left initially were simply continuing the cycle of St. Louis's elite moving westward whenever an area became too crowded, polluted, or unfashionable. However, anti-Black racism was commonly cited as the principal cause of this "white flight." Over the subsequent decades, the streets surrounding Westmoreland Place and Portland Place changed significantly. Formerly well-maintained homes fell into visible disrepair, were boarded up, or were converted into rooming houses. Businesses closed and moved west. Crime increased. For those who had not left in the first exodus, this urban decay contributed to many feeling forced to flee for safety or because of declining property values.

While others abandoned the Central West End, many of the residents on Westmoreland Place and Portland Place were resolute and committed to staying in place.  Indentures drafted decades earlier helped preserve the neighborhood.  The indentures prohibited homes to be used by more than a single-family or to be used for business purposes, so they weren’t converted into rooming houses or businesses.  The indentures also allowed the trustees to take action to insulate the neighborhood from the increase in crime by closing the gates at the gatehouses and hiring security guards to protect the residents and their properties.  The residents’ commitment to stay coupled with forward-thinking indentures helped Westmoreland Place and Portland Place residents remain in place to weather the storm. 

Over time, the unequaled architecture, central location, and proximity to Forest Park’s thousand-plus acres brought people back. Today, the Central West End stands strong once more. Homes were renovated, properties improved and neighborhoods restored. There was an investment in new housing and fashionable businesses returned to the neighborhood. The formation of the private non-profit organization, Forest Park Forever, and its endowment, helped ensure neighboring Forest Park’s future for generations to come. Washington University, Barnes-Jewish Hospital, and Saint Louis University also made significant commitments and expansions in the Central West End region.

Today, residents of Westmoreland Place and Portland Place host parties to welcome new homeowners, gather for a summer picnic that has become a beloved tradition, and enjoy an annual Halloween bonfire. The neighborhood is a mix of homeowners who have lived on the streets for decades and younger families who have just moved in. Residents walk the streets daily enjoying the park-like atmosphere, stopping to chat with one another during their strolls.  Many also gather together to support local non-profits, especially Forest Park Forever as it was the lovely acres and the park that attracted the first residents of the streets.  Beyond enjoying their surroundings and social events, however, these homeowners also remain committed to maintaining these architecturally significant homes in these private places. They are grateful to the developers, architects, and first homeowners who pioneered the establishment of these neighborhoods. They also recognize that in many respects, they are caretakers of these homes for future generations and are committed to preservation.  As it was in 1907 when Isaac Lionberger wrote his sister Mary, residents of Westmoreland Place and Portland Place hope to enjoy the “serenity of this neighborhood” for many years to come. 

LOST HOMES

Unfortunately, many impressive homes have been lost over the years. Several were among the largest.

Some cite the Great Depression as a cause when the government put a ceiling of $500 per year on improvements households could make, limiting the repairs that could be made to the Westmoreland Place mansions and precipitating the decline of these mansions into an irreparable state. Others said that higher property taxes made it more economical to raze these homes than continue to maintain them. Some even theorize that the lack of available help needed to maintain homes of this size was the reason for their ruin as those interested in domestic service dropped by half during the 1940’s.

Thankfully, more than 50 years have passed since the last home was demolished and homes built later have filled in the gaps. In 1974, Westmoreland Place and Portland Place were nominated for the National Register of Historic Places. They were accepted so approval for future demolitions would be more difficult. These are the only two private places in the United States on the National Register of Historic Places today.

ARTICLES

A LOOK INSIDE A MANSION BUILT IN 1916 BY A TOBACCO TYCOON

The historic Westmoreland Place home was built by Daniel Catlin as a gift for his wife. It features a guest wing, rotunda foyer, and splash pool.

ST. LOUIS STYLE

Today Westmoreland and Portland Places are considered the premiere streets of the Central West End. In fact, they always have been the chic place to live since the World’s Fair. Though, during hard times these fine streets did not go unscathed…though certainly not hit as hard as some of the other fine streets in the Central West End.

“OZ” IN ST. LOUIS

Here's a typical sight in the city of St. Louis, MO, a gate to a private street. Runaway growth and an acute local sense of property rights drove St. Louis' 19th century elite into restricted residential enclaves, places where soap factories, locomotive works, dry goods emporiums, tanneries, etc., wouldn't appear overnight next door. 

RESTORATION OF A BEAUX ARTS MANSION

At the turn of the 20th century, St. Louis, Missouri, was the nation’s fourth largest city. Mansions lined the streets; the opulent train station, filled with stained glass and decorated tiles, was said to be the busiest in the country. The city was abuzz over the upcoming 1904 World’s Fair. Lewis Dozier caught the spirit of celebration. A prominent soda-cracker manufacturer (his company later would become Nabisco), Dozier built, in 1896, a 12,000-square-foot mansion in the florid, academic Beaux Arts style. Set in the fashionable Westmoreland Place neighborhood, the location of the house was ideal: just across from Forest Park, the site of the upcoming Fair.