dual personalities

Yesterday was the anniversary of the February 10, 1959 “tornado outbreak” in St. Louis. I was not-quite three years old so I don’t remember it and luckily we lived in a part of town that was not hit. However, the F4 tornado did sweep through my current stomping grounds–Warson Woods, Rock Hill, Brentwood–on its way to the city.

It toppled the Channel 2 television tower and one of the Arena’s two towers before moving on to devastate the area around Boyle and Olive Streets (Gaslight Square).

The tornado was on the ground for at least 35 minutes, traveled 23.9 miles (38.5 km), was 200 yards (180 m) wide, and caused $50.25 million is damage. 345 people were injured and 21 others were killed, making it the third deadliest tornado in the city’s history.

Interestingly, the heyday of Gaslight Square was actually kick-started in the aftermath of the city’s 1959 tornado outbreak, which caused severe property damage but also led to an influx of attention and insurance money. Business owners took advantage of this to revitalize the local economy. It became a very hip place to hang out–even my parents went there. Entertainers who performed in the clubs included: Miles Davis, Bob Dylan, Barbra Streisand, Judy Collins, the Smothers Brothers, Phyllis Diller, Woody Allen, and so on…

A 1962 episode of the TV show Route 66 titled “Hey Moth, Come Eat the Flame” was set and filmed inside The Darkside jazz club. How cool can you get?

Gaslight Square didn’t last long, however, and the Board of Alderman, who had officially renamed the district on 24 March 1961, retired the name in December of 1972. Easy come, easy go. C’est la vie.

P.S. I watched the Route 66 episode and besides the scenes in Gaslight Square there are scenes shot at the Chase Park Plaza on Kingshighway and the old Rock Hill quarry (which is mostly filled in now) and in some bowling alley I could not identify. It’s worth checking out for that!