A Brief History On April 1, 1861, the municipality called East St. Louis was established. At its peak East St. Louis, Illinois, was a great city. Built on the wetlands across from St. Louis after the Civil War the city forced itself on land the Mississippi River often tried to reclaim. East St. Louis survived and even thrived, with a booming industrial and commercial base. In the 1950s it reached its zenith of 82,000 people and was named an all American City, an honor proudly displayed on a billboard-sized sign in a park. Digging Deeper But alas, soon East St.…
Author: Greg Bailey
Greg Bailey
Greg Bailey is a St. Louis based history writer and journalist. He is a graduate of the University of Illinois, the University of Missouri School of Journalism and the Washington University School of Law.
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