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St. Louis Coliseum

1908 establishments in Missouri1953 disestablishments in MissouriDefunct boxing venues in the United StatesDefunct indoor arenas in the United StatesDefunct sports venues in Missouri
Demolished buildings and structures in St. LouisIndoor arenas in MissouriSports venues completed in 1908Sports venues in St. Louis
Coliseum (NBY 436786)
Coliseum (NBY 436786)

The St. Louis Coliseum was a venue in St. Louis, Missouri. The closing of the 1904 World’s Fair left the city without a convention center for three years. A group of businessmen led by attorney Guy Golterman assembled $450,000 in private funding, and built the Coliseum at Washington and Jefferson Avenues. It was designed by Frederick C. Bonsack and occupied a full block. When the cornerstone was laid on August 22, 1908, it was claimed the building would be the largest public building in the United States. It replaced the St. Louis Exposition and Music Hall as the city's main convention and big entertainment center. Golterman was the Secretary to the Company and first manager of the Coliseum. Colonel Pickering managed it for some time. The building accommodated the 1916 Democratic nominating convention, wrestling and boxing matches, trade shows, and musical extravaganzas. Enrico Caruso performed in the Coliseum twice: first with the Metropolitan Opera Company in April 1910 and again in May 1919, giving a concert for Liberty Loans. Lack of parking, the emergence of neighborhood swimming pools, and Kiel Auditorium, which opened in 1934, effectively ended the usefulness of St. Louis Coliseum. It was closed in 1939, and it was condemned as unsafe by the city in 1953.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article St. Louis Coliseum (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

St. Louis Coliseum
Washington Boulevard, St. Louis

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Latitude Longitude
N 38.634937 ° E -90.213847 °
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Washington Boulevard
63108 St. Louis
Missouri, United States
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Coliseum (NBY 436786)
Coliseum (NBY 436786)
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Willys–Overland Building
Willys–Overland Building

The Willys–Overland Building is a former automobile dealership and distribution building for the Willys-Overland Company in St. Louis, Missouri located at 2300 Locust Street. The building was the home of the company's main dealership and distributor in St. Louis from its completion in February 1917 until 1932, and upon its opening, it hosted the first indoor St. Louis Auto Show.The building's exterior is a six-story brick facade with large windows on all sides and minimal ornamentation. Originally, the building had a showroom on its first floor, while upper floors included storage space and auto assembly rooms, connected by large freight elevators. The building also contained a body paint shop and a repair shop on its upper floors; to support the weight of the automobiles and shops, the floors are nearly one foot thick poured concrete.At the time of its construction, it was the largest automobile dealership and distribution center in St. Louis. As a result of its size, the organizers of the St. Louis Auto Show negotiated to rent the building for their annual show, which since 1907 had been held outdoors at Forest Park Highlands. By 1927, the company had expanded such that its used car dealership moved to an adjacent building and the company was operating a dozen dealerships in the area, but the building remained the corporations regional headquarters through 1932.However, the Great Depression brought economic hardship to the company, and in 1932, the building was vacated; it remained vacant through 1935, when it was sold to the American Fixture and Manufacturing Company. In 1963, it again was sold, and since that time various small businesses occupied the first floor with little activity on its upper floors. In 1999, the building was nominated and accepted to the National Register of Historic Places, and it underwent renovations by SJI Companies. In 2005, the building received another renovation, costing $12 million, and it was renamed the NSI Building. It currently is for sale for $17 million.