This massive concrete block is a long, narrow exercise in industrial geometry. It stretches 750 feet east to west but only 30 feet from north to south. The St. Louis Southwestern Railway began building the five-story freight depot in 1911, and it opened on January 1, 1913. It was designed to be efficient, featuring loading dock doors on both sides sheltered by a concrete awning.
When the freight forwarding company, Acme, moved its operations to East St. Louis in 1959, the building became vacant. It has been vacant since 1959. The upper floors are now inaccessible except by rope or ladder through open elevator shafts. Windows and doors have been destroyed, leaving the building open to the elements from its sides.
Architecture enthusiasts might appreciate the copper lions' heads on the awning poles or the terra cotta medallions. Most of the detail is concentrated around the old office section, where the company name is displayed in two levels over a bay window. It is a stark contrast to the rest of the structure, which is currently serving as a site for graffiti and graffiti art.
Today, the building has no formal tenants or function. It has hosted Artica, an annual grassroots outdoor and multidisciplinary arts festival, since 2002. A large mural is visible from the nearby bridge over the Mississippi River. At the far North and South ends of the building, occupants live in makeshift homes made of pallets and tires.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
Written by Kyle McLonely
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