Cotton Belt Depot #3: Inside

The interior of the Cotton Belt is sparse, but not without its uses. The owner recently gave permission for an art happening to occur within its confines, to great success.

Cotton Belt Depot #2: Sunset

I realized when I came back later in the day and photographed the Cotton Belt at sunset, that what appears to be a very simple, unornamented building is actually a very complex, and richly decorated building, if you look in the right places.First of all, the gentle curve at the top of the parapet wall is clearly reminiscent of Egyptian architecture, as subtle as it is.The most exciting part, however, is the elaborate Beaux-Arts decoration around the office portion of the building.The terracotta sign, identifying the building, is a beautiful shade of green, only partially ruined by a graffitist.The door is a true gem, looking as splendid as the door to any bank built about the same time.Above the doorway is another shield, ornamented with the bounty brought into the depot.The small detail of the bay window, presumably for the foreman's office, is a nice touch, and one not immediately noticeable from up close.The bricks of the loading yards are still there, slowly being choked by weeds, some of which are actually quite beautiful. When I was there, wildflowers of all different colors had sprouted throughout the depot yards.Tomorrow, we will go inside the slender building and look at its interior.Here is the location from satellite images.

Cotton Belt Depot #1: Morning

The Cotton Belt Depot is amazing; over 700 feet long but only 30 feet wide, it casts an impressive shadow over the Near North Riverfront.A relic of when the area was a bustling center of industry and railroad connections, it now sits in splendid isolation, still in excellent condition but slowly deteriorating.I would love to see it restored, but it's still beautiful right now, surrounded by a field of wildflowers.The building looks bare at first, but when you start to look closer, unique details begin to emerge, such as the lion's head holding up the roof.

Ashley Street Power Plant, Revisited

There is no more beautiful building in St. Louis than the Ashley Street Power Plant at sunset. It is filthy, but the way the stone reflects the sun is incredible.

The Eads Bridge

The Eads Bridge is my favorite bridge across the Mississippi River in downtown, though the MacArthur is a close second. The oldest bridge across the river at St. Louis, it utilized structural steel on a massive scale for the first time.