In celebration of the city of St. Louis's 250th birthday this year (2014), there was a special cake. Times that by 250, that is!
Called 'Cakeway to the West', 250+ cakes have been placed all over the St. Louis area, including the Metro East. Places that have cakes include historical landmarks, parks, museums, popular restaurants, as well as government places. These are just a few examples as the places represented St. Louis in a memorable way.
This was my second attempt to get the Urban League cake, as the last time I was in Midtown/Grand area was over a month ago. That's when I got all the cakes in Fox Theatre, Powell Hall, SLU, etc. But I was a half hour late in getting this indoor cake, which left me a bit bummed. This time around I got it around 4:30, a half hour before they closed. I'm glad I wasn't alone in this though, as I've heard several other people try to get this one as well.
The Urban League location at Grandel Square
The front desk
What is the Urban League, you ask? It is an organization that was inter racially founded in 1917 after the deadly East St. Louis riots. It can be compared well to the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People). I asked the receptionist her definition of the Urban League. She said it is similar to the NAACP but it is to engage minorities into a wildly array of programs. The Urban League of St. Louis currently serves 80,000 residents with meeting basic needs and educational quality, among other things.
Musicians featured on this side are Henry Townsend (top), Robert McFerrin, Sr. (bottom left) and Willie Mae Ford Smith (center)
A close look at Clark Terry and Ike & Tina Turner
Close look at Helen Traubel and Johnnie Johnston
Helen Traubel
John Hartford (top), Grace Burns (bottom left) and Miles Davis (bottom right)
So I found this one to be a bit confusing. Not to find, but because of its location (its upstairs in the building the cake is in front of). The building looked like a tavern, since it had 'Whiskey and Small Batch' on the signs. I didn't know what TOKY was all about. Maybe it was a store? Nope, as it turns out, it played a huge part in the celebration of St. Louis's 250th anniversary. They decorated the famous 'STL250' logo!
TOKY is a brand design company that has designed famous logos and different advertisements that we've all seen - some on a day-by-day basis. Think Panera Bread. Think Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis. Also, some of places that have cakes (Bellefontaine Cemetary and World Chess Hall of Fame) are clients of theirs. It's not just in St. Louis their work is exposed. We're talking all over the country (ex. Woody Guthrie Museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma).
Front entrance
Plaque next to door about Ford Building
Some facts about TOKY:
For 17 years, they claim to have been in good standing with their clients.
Consists of a 25-person staff.
Clients include Ronnoco Coffee, Facebook and National Geographic
Currently housed in the Ford Building (built in 1913), which at one time housed the B.F. Goodrich Tire Co., and General Motor Car. Co., the St. Louis Hupmobile dealer.
Just within a walking distance from the Grand Central Arts district and Saint Louis University sits this historically black educational institution. Here are some interesting facts about the university:
Motto: Inspiring change
Founded in 1857, it was the first public teacher institution west of the Mississippi River.
It was founded as a 'normal school' (name for a college that trains high school graduates to be teachers) for whites, and was named Harris Teachers College, after William Torrey Harris.
In 1890, a black 'normal school' was founded and was named after author Harriet Beecher Stowe (famous for Uncle Tom's Cabin)
The Harris and Stowe schools were merged as a result from the 1954 Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court ruling
In 2005, the school attained university status, and the name was changed to Harris-Stowe State University.
Harris Teachers College was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.
It is one of only two historically black colleges in Missouri.
Notable alumni include former St. Louis television news anchor Julius Hunter, and Bobby Wilks, the first African-American promoted to Captain of the United States Coast Guard
One of my earliest memories was watching kids educational programs on Channel 9. Before the generation of children learning their basic stuff on Nickelodeon shows, I was raised on PBS. Sesame Street, Mr. Rogers Neighborhood, Captain Kangaroo, 3-2-1 Contact and the Letter People are just a few of the shows that helped me learn and grow as a kid before I attended grade school (as well as while in school). Sesame Street, one of television's longest-running programs, has introduced me to the alphabet, counting, some Spanish language (thanks Luis and Maria!), as well as social situations like diversity and culture. The Muppets as well as the humans like Bob and David (before his sudden death) were always great to watch and they made learning such things fun. The video posted above was posted because that is how I remember watching Channel 9 as a kid. Looking back, that bumper really creeped me out in a way!
St. Louis does have the basic network television stations serving the area, all representing the major networks: ABC (30), CBS (4), NBC (5), FOX (2), CW (11), plus Channel 24, which features mostly religious programming and Channel 46, which is an affiliate for the Ion network. A cake could have easily been placed at any of these stations, especially since most of them are in downtown St. Louis. But it makes perfect sense to put one just outside the Nine Network, especially since it is one of the first public television stations in America. For the record, the call letters in KETC stand for 'Educational Television Commission'. It has been on the air since September 20, 1954. Its transmitter is in Fenton.
In college I did an externship at Channel 9 for one day, shadowing Patrick Murphy. Murphy has been with Channel 9 for more than 30 years, and has done several duties around the station. His recognizable voice is heard on several of its commercials and bumpers, as well as the program, Living St. Louis. I was more than thrilled to witness what he does during his daily activities at Channel 9. Of course, I learned several things from him. 'You have to breathe, sleep and eat television, 24/7, if you want to be in this business'.
The cake:
Right side of the cake
Left side of the cake
On some of these stl250 blog posts I have featured episodes of KETC Channel 9's documentary program Living St. Louis. This episode looks back at the late Charles Guggenheim, who helped start Channel 9 in St. Louis.
Another place on my long list of 'St Louis Places I've Never Been To'. There have been a couple close calls where my church youth group almost saw a symphony. The St. Louis Symphony is one of the Top 5 most popular orchestras in the nation. Founded in 1880, it is also the second-oldest symphony in the United States, behind the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.
Erected in 1925, the building was originally called The St. Louis Theater.
The St. Louis Theater regularly showed vaudeville-type shows and movies.
In the mid-60s, the building underwent several renovations, and re-opened as the new home of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra in 1968. The orchestra still regularly performs there.
It was also renamed Powell Symphony Hall, after St. Louis businessman Walter S. Powell.
Powell, who was president of the U.S. Figure Skating Association in the mid-1940s, died in 1961 in a plane crash. His widow donated $1 million towards the hall.
One of the iconic theaters in St. Louis...period. Think about the location, the architecture, you name it. Even Roger Waters (formerly of Pink Floyd) raved about it in a Rolling Stone interview. Sadly, I've only been there once, and there were a couple times I was about to go back but (as it turned out) they were sold-out events. It was cool to see David Byrne live in concert there back in 2008.
Built in 1929, it started out as a movie theater and was for the next three decades.
Named after William Fox, who was an original motion picture legend who showcased films from his company, Fox Film Corporation.
When it was finished, the theater was the second-largest theater in the United States at the time.
The theater closed in 1978, but re-opened in 1982 after it was purchased by Fox Associates.
Three decades after its re-opening, it continuously hosts several music concerts and Broadway shows/musicals.
Musicians that have performed here include the White Stripes, Ringo Starr, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Paramore
Currently seats 4,192 people, not including the 'private Fox club'
Right side of the cake
Left side of the cake
Top of the cake
An episode of KETC Channel 9's 'Living St. Louis' devoted to Fox Theatre
There is also an episode of 'Living St. Louis' devoted to the classic Fox Organ located at the theater
The first cake upon hitting the Grand Avenue/Midtown Arts District (not counting SLU) just happened to be sitting at the corner waiting to be photographed.
A little history about the building (which is next to the Fabulous Fox):
The BBBS is housed in the Woolworth Building, which, of course, the legendary drugstore was.
The building which once sat before Woolworth was the old Beers Hotel, which was destroyed by fire in the 1940s.
It was the site of several pickets and protests, mostly focused during the Civil Rights era in the 1960s. The lunch counter at the Woolworths store was segregated.
Woolworths closed in 1993, and it sat vacant for many years
