In 1878 Charles and Alonzo Slayback, along with other civic-minded St. Louisans, formed the Mysterious Order of the Veiled Prophet, named after Thomas Moore’s Lalla-Rookh. They’d seen the impact Mardi Gras had on New Orleans, both in raising that city’s profile and adding to its coffers. So with an aim to promote St. Louis, which at the time was suffering a recession, they hosted a parade and grand ball that attracted more than 50,000 spectators. Although the VP organization and its events have since evolved, one thing that hasn’t wavered is the VP’s dedication to the growth and well-being of St. Louis.
[1878]
Floats for the first parade are purchased from the New Orleans Mardi Gras for $8,000 and shipped to St. Louis via steamboat.
[1887]
President and Mrs. Grover Cleveland attend the Veiled Prophet Ball.
[1894]
Hester Bates Laughlin is crowned the first Queen of Love and Beauty. Her crown was modeled after Queen Victoria’s, and she carried a bouquet of American Beauty roses.
[1908]
Presidential candidate William H. Taft attends the parade and ball.
[1909]
The ball moves to the St. Louis Coliseum.
[1914]
The Veiled Prophet Organization helps stage the St. Louis Pageant and Masque in Forest Park. More than 400,000 people attended the five-day event celebrating St. Louis’ history.
[1915]
The first Queen’s Supper is held after the presentation of the maids at the annual ball.
[1917-1918]
The ball and parade are canceled during World War I.
[1921]
In tribute to the new aviation era, the Veiled Prophet arrives to the annual celebration via airplane.
[1922]
The Veiled Prophet’s Guard of Honor (called the Bengal Lancers after 1937) is launched.
[1924]
Missouri Botanical Garden begins supplying rare orchids for the Queen and her court at the ball.
[1935]
The ball moves to Kiel Auditorium.
[1949]
The Veiled Prophet arrives for his annual visitation via an ornate river barge.
[1950-1951]
The ball is broadcast nationally on NBC.
[1975]
The ball moves to the Khorassan Room of the Chase Park Plaza Hotel.
[July 4, 1981]
The VP Fair (now called Fair Saint Louis) kicks off under the Gateway Arch.
[1982]
The Veiled Prophet Foundation and the VP Fair make the first of several major gifts to the city, including the lighting of Eads Bridge, the Mississippi River Overlook stage and Riverfront Promenade.
[1986]
The ball moves to the Adam’s Mark (now Hyatt Regency Hotel).
[1987]
ABC produces A Star Spangled Celebration, a prime-time special on the VP Fair.
[1995]
VP Fair changes its name to Fair Saint Louis.
[2002]
The Veiled Prophet Community Service Initiative begins and mobilizes Veiled Prophet Maids of Honor and their fathers as volunteers with dozens of St. Louis nonprofit agencies.
The VP Foundation and Fair Saint Louis, along with other civic organizations, provide the funding to complete the Grand Staircase of the Gateway Arch.
[2006]
Fair Saint Louis produces Live on the Levee (now Summer Concert Series), which provides free entertainment downtown in the weeks after the Fair.
[2010]
Fair Saint Louis returns to the Arch grounds from the Levee and restores the Fair Saint Louis Air Show.
[2013]
The Veiled Prophet Foundation and Fair Saint Louis Foundation announce a new Fallen Officers Memorial, to be constructed in the lobby of the Metropolitan 1937 Ball at Kiel Auditorium St. Louis Police Headquarters.
Photos by Veiled Prophet Organization
Pictured: 1937 ball at Kiel Auditorium
