There’s an annual art show on the streets of Old Town St. Charles that I started going to a couple of years ago, and every time I do, I’m amazed at how charming the place is. I don’t mean the occasional kitschy storefront touting ‘olde tyme’ this or that, but all the attractions at the heart of the historic town. It is, after all, the first permanent settlement on the Missouri River, established in 1769. And its riverfront is where Lewis and Clark launched their monumental Corps of Discovery voyage up the Missouri River, the expedition that explored our country’s western interior.
Today, visitors are treated to Frontier Park, a lovely, natural, green waterfront area along the river. It has been created to reflect the town’s history: rustic gazebos, old rail cars and a monumental bronze statue of the two explorers. A nearby plaque explains that the expedition left Camp Dubois, its winter encampment at Wood River, Illinois, at the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers, to get to St. Charles. There, about 450 residents showed up at the riverfront to see them off in 1804. Another interesting fact: From 1821 to 1826, the sleepy town was the temporary state capitol, headquartered at 200 S. Main St.
So what else might attract visitors today, especially those not particularly interested in history? I find Main Street charming as an authentic, 19th-century region, with beautiful, old wooden structures, many with planked wood stoops and wood-beamed porches. The architecture is fascinating, and there are numerous eateries where visitors can sit outside (or in) and face scenes right out of the American past. At night, the cobbled street is lit by gas lamps. It’s fun to step into the past for a few hours—and how can you resist a place that has fudge shops, candy stores and ice cream parlors all on the same block? There’s also a Saturday farmers’ market with farmers in overalls and women selling homemade baked goods. One of them even offered weekly delivery of her eggs to Clayton! And to maximize your Americana experience: frontiersman Daniel Boone’s preserved homestead is nearby in Defiance and open to visitors. I highly recommend it. That is where our area’s Boone’s Lick Road got its name—and it was the departure point for both the Santa Fe and Oregon trails.
Yet even with all these points of interest, I don’t often hear about St. Louisans visiting old town St. Charles. Or about them taking out-of-town guests there. I’m not sure why, since it’s just as interesting a ‘museum’ as the indoor ones we frequent. It’s a ‘living museum’ inextricably linked to America’s westward expansion, a place where you don’t look at exhibits but rather are a part of history just by being there.