Tacked this little fancy on the end of my comments, idea has been rolling around in my head for years

As you know The National Museum of transport is located in West St, Louis County, where it suffers from being too far out of the way to generate the visitors it should be getting.

The whole mechanism of westward expansion in the United States was facilitated by our use and eventual love of all things transport.

Trains, riverboats, cars and airplanes were the mechanism to our movement west. Route 66 passes by the arch, St. Louis was a huge railhub, the Mississippi River was the highway of the 19th century and Lindbergh's journey was financed from St. Louis (as well as home to McDonald Douglass who powered us across the oceans and into space)
While no entry makes mention of this let me propose that the National Museum of Transport should be part of this design and located at on Chouteau's Landing south of the Arch.

No where in America is there a better location for it some much of transport history hinges on this stretch of ground, Route 66, The Mississippi, and The Arch.
It already exists in St. Louis it needs to be at the Arch

The Central Scrutinizer wrote:Union Station would be the best location.

+1 on Union Station -- Great Idea.

I grew up within walking distance of the Museum. It really is a neat museum, especially for kids. I think it would be a very popular destination if located at US.

The museum owns a lot of land out there and numerous renovations and expansions have beem completed recently. It would likely be a hard sell to uproot.


Here is the website
http://transportmuseumassociation.org/

The Museum is located in Kirkwood and was donated to St. Louis County Parks Dept. For that reason I don't see it moving.

Alex Ihnen wrote:I love the idea of a museum showcase downtown. It would be great to feature the Museum of the Dog, Mercantile Library, etc. There needs to be something more than a kiosk with brochures. Having a few pieces from and large photos of the various regional attractions would be great.

I really wish UMSL would have never moved the Mercantile Library out of downtown. Ugh.

Are there any trains remaining at US? I remember there being several tracks of train cars on the SW part of the shed within the last decade.

Alex Ihnen wrote:I love the idea of a museum showcase downtown. It would be great to feature the Museum of the Dog, Mercantile Library, etc. There needs to be something more than a kiosk with brochures. Having a few pieces from and large photos of the various regional attractions would be great.

I would still like to see an existing building downtown turned into a Gallery of Modern Art, or something similar, similar to the one in Glasgow, Scotland. Could the first floor of the Old Post Office show some whimsey on the outside and modern sculpture inside? Something kind of hip that conventioneers and downtown workers can just wander through when they have some free time. Here are some pictures of the one in Glasgow. It used to be a bank, and it made me see Glasgow as a cool city. (Notice the traffic cone on the head of the statute of the Duke of Wellington.)

I don't think the layout of the Old Post Office lends itself to the display of modern art. I've always imagined the General American building on Market transformed into a modern art museum, though.

debaliviere wrote: I really wish UMSL would have never moved the Mercantile Library out of downtown. Ugh.

Couldn't agree more. Perhaps UMSL moving KWMU to midtown is a promising sign for a possible Mercantile Library move. I've always thought it should be near the Missouri Historical Society. Perhaps on the lot across Debaliviere from the Forest Park Metro station? But, a merger with the Arch Museum of Westward Expansion is also a fantastic idea. A move to Midtown or Laclede's Landing would also be great.

In the spring I went to this show: Lives on the Mississippi: Literature and Culture Along the Great River, at New York's Grollier Club. All of the materials in the show were provided by the St. Louis Mercatile Library, and it was curated by the Library's Director, John Hoover. It was really a great showcase of the Mercantile's rich collection. Even though they've donated many of their major works on canvas to area museums, they still have an impressive collection of early prints (ie Thomas Hart Benton, George Caleb Bingham, George Caitlin (see below), maps, and paraphernalia which deserve a higher profile, more easily accessible, and heavily trafficked location than UMSL.

The Museum of Transportation is owned and operated by the St. Louis County Department of Parks and Recreation. Thus the location of the museum currently is geographically limited to the county boundaries.

One of the reasons for the current location are the historic Barrett's Tunnels (1851-3), the first railroad tunnels west of the Mississippi. However, the founders of the museum -- originally it was a private endeavor -- had considered both Union Station and the east riverfront railyards (including the Big Four terminal tracks where the Casino Queen is now located) for the museum location.

Ecoabsence spells out, for a number of reasons, why Museum of Transportation is firmly entranched in its present and expanding location. Even though they don't highlight the very historical reason for their location, Barrett's Tunnels which are fenced off at the end of a short trolley ride (have the trolley go through the tunnel!!)

However, I think the area's institutions could embrace a couple of ideas.

1) Combinatino Exhibition space/urban green houses next to City Garden that will allow temporary exhibition of area collections. The region has some impressive collections but not in very ideal locations as noted by Wabash. No sense trying to get everybody to move when they don't want to. However, creating more accessible space for temporary exhibitions would be a great selling point to out of towners. Tying it to the Missouri Botanical Gardens and a sclupture park across the street would be a big plus.
2) Finally, Designs that embrace a western entrance and expanded role for the Westward Ho Memorial musuem. Dansforth missed the point by wanting to establish a new museum, instead come back to downtown and make a much much much better idea happen!
3) A City/County/History&Transportation Museum effort to put a real paddle boat at the foot of the Arch. Not asking for relocating the Transportation Museum, but just a legitimate riverfront addition that embraces the history of the river in the spot where it needs to be by a group of institutions that can sustain it in a meaningful way.

Dredger wrote:Ecoabsence spells out, for a number of reasons, why Museum of Transportation is firmly entranched in its present and expanding location. Even though they don't highlight the very historical reason for their location, Barrett's Tunnels which are fenced off at the end of a short trolley ride (have the trolley go through the tunnel!!)

The tunnels are now caves as they do not go through. They are popular party spots for west county high school kids.

^The Museum tunnel does continue through, but it is fenced off because the roof is unstable. Before the trolley was put in, there was an operation locomotive and caboose that you could ride into the tunnel.

http://bridgehunter.com/mo/st-louis/highlands-tunnel/
http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM3GPQ

Some good pictures of the Meremac Highlands tunnel and the Barrett's West tunnel. Funny that I can't find any pictures of the Barrett's East tunnel. That's the one we always used to party at back in HS. Odd that the Barrett's east tunnel is many times larger than these two.

i am preparing a holiday to the National Museum of Transport, however, i am doubtful of how to arrive there accurately. i cannot drive and nor can my mother and father so it is really public transport for us that makes it difficult. Please help!

Yes, unfortunately it's way out there. I still haven't been there. Looks like public transport would take over an hour from downtown and include a long walk along a very pedestrian unfriendly road. Car/taxi/hitchhike are probably your only options. Ironic that only one form of transport can get you to the Museum of Transportation. That's why so many of us fantasize that it can be moved to Union Station.