More than 150 years ago, the Old Courthouse at Gateway Arch National Park was the scene of an important yet little-known chapter in the early days of the U.S. women’s suffrage movement. And though the outcome of the court case brought by suffragist Virginia Minor didn’t result in women’s right to vote at the time, it set the stage for the eventual adoption of the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution 48 years later, finally granting women the vote.
In October of 1872 – shortly before the Presidential election of that year – Virginia Minor walked into the St. Louis Courthouse determined to make history. She tried to register to vote in the upcoming election, citing the 14th Amendment clause which states “All persons born or naturalized in the United States… are citizens of the United States.” Yet the registrar refused to register Minor because she was female, provoking a civil suit brought by Virginia and her lawyer husband, Francis Minor.
The Minors quickly lost their case in the lower court, and it was eventually heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. The high court unanimously ruled that citizenship did not guarantee the right to vote – a major blow to the women’s suffrage movement.
Suffragists then turned their efforts toward state-by-state campaigns to change state constitutions to allow women to vote. Eventually nine states and territories, mostly in the West, had abolished voting restrictions against women by the time the 19th Amendment was ratified 1920. Sadly, Virginia Minor never lived to see women’s right to vote enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. She died in 1894, leaving $1,000 in her will to Susan B. Anthony to carry on the struggle.
On March 30, Gateway Arch National Park will highlight the story of Virginia Minor in a public presentation. Check here for more details.
We can’t imagine that anyone is tired of hearing about U.S. presidential elections, right? (heh-heh). But wait – we’re not asking you to vote again anytime soon! We’re talking about a few fascinating presidential contests from more than 150 years ago, involving Ulysses S. Grant.
When the U.S. Civil War ended in 1865, Abraham Lincoln was serving his second term as President. General Grant, the military hero of the Union war effort, agreed with many of his policies and had little interest in seeking elected office. “Everybody who knows me knows that I have no political aspirations either now or for the future,” he wrote in a letter. “I hope to remain a soldier as long as I live.”
President Grant, photo by Matthew Brady (Library of Congress) President Johnson, photo by A. Gardner (Library of Congress)
However, Grant’s political aspirations changed after the assassination of President Lincoln. Lincoln’s successor, Andrew Johnson, was a Unionist Southerner who became increasingly lenient toward former Confederates. Johnson vetoed all civil rights legislation passed by Congress, putting him at odds with numerous prominent leaders including Grant, a supporter of African American civil rights.
Campaign flyer from the 1868 presidential election
The Republican Party persuaded Grant to run for president in 1868 against New York governor Horatio Seymour. The party’s platform included ongoing support for Reconstruction, protecting the rights of loyal southerners including African Americans, and ultimately granting all male citizens the right to vote. Other issues included reducing taxes, working towards the elimination of the national debt, and promoting westward expansion and economic growth. Grant’s campaign slogan was “Let Us Have Peace.” He won the 1868 popular vote by 300,000, helped by the newly enfranchised Blacks in some Southern reconstructed states.
Thomas Nast – 1867 Harper’s Weekly
After his first term in office, Grant’s popularity was still high, though there was increasing opposition from those who favored replacing Reconstruction in the South with local self-government, i.e., white rule. The Democratic party nominated Horace Greeley as its candidate in 1872, but once again Grant prevailed, this time by a margin of 56 to 44 percent.
Grant’s two terms as the 18th U.S. president are marked by a number of accomplishments. He supported and signed the 15th Amendment to the Constitution, giving African American men the right to vote. He fought to protect Native Americans from people who wanted their land, although the eventual results of this “peace policy” were mixed. He sought free public education for all, regardless of race, gender, or religion. Grant signed legislation establishing Yellowstone as the nation’s first national park in 1872. And on the international front, he peacefully settled major disputes with England over its support for the Confederacy during the Civil War.
After eight years in office, Grant looked forward to retirement, and Rutherford B. Hayes was elected president in 1876. But as the 1880 elections loomed, supporters of Grant urged him to run for an unprecedented third term. They favored his strong advocacy for Black civil rights and his diplomatic efforts to strengthen the U.S. at home and abroad. Others, however, were concerned about corruption among some of Grant’s former White House aides, and they formed an “anybody but Grant” coalition.
Grant “surrenders” the party’s nomination to Garfield. Puck Magazine 1880, Library of Congress
Grant did not actively seek the Republican Party’s 1880 nomination, but he didn’t turn it down either. He stood for election during the party’s convention in Chicago, as did several other candidates. But after numerous votes, the delegates failed to select a presidential candidate. Congressman James A. Garfield made a persuasive speech calling for party unity, after which the party nominated him. Garfield went on to be elected president later that year.
If you’re interested in learning more about the 1880 election, the staff at Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site has compiled a small temporary exhibit in the site’s visitor center that examines Grant’s “surrendering” the nomination to Garfield. It runs through mid-November.
Halloween is here! That time of year when young (and not so young) trick-or-treaters dress up as ghosts, superheroes, princesses, and cowboys. What will your kids (or you) be this year?
Left: 6-year-old Billy Blythe (Clinton) as Hopalong Cassidy. Courtesy of NPS.
One now-famous little boy had no problem picking his Halloween costume. Young Billy Blythe (later President William Jefferson Clinton) was obsessed with the cowboy star Hopalong Cassidy. He dressed up in western outfits whenever he could and was particularly proud of his childhood bedspread embroidered with his hero’s name. (Check out his bedroom when you visit President William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home National Historic Site.)
Was little Billy attracted to Hopalong Cassidy because he often rescued honest citizens from despicable outlaws? Or was it because the film and TV star shared the same last name as his maternal grandparents, Eldridge and Edith Cassidy? Whatever the reason, he remained fascinated with his idol for many years.
Courtesy of NPS
While we’re on the subject of Halloween, how about some clever ideas for how to carve your pumpkins? The National Park Service offers a fun selection of downloadable pumpkin carving templates, including a fat bear (shown above), a bat (did you know more than 45 species of bats live in national parks?), a bison butting a park visitor (!), and a coyote howling at the moon. What will YOUR jack-o-lantern look like?
Shh, wanna know a secret that most visitors to Gateway Arch National Park don’t know? There’s another way to get to the top of the Arch, beyond riding in a tram car. There’s a hidden staircase inside each leg of the Arch, with 1,076 steps on each side.
Architectural drawing of the staircase inside the Gateway Arch. Credit: Library of Congress
But if the idea of climbing that many stairs makes your head spin, don’t worry. The staircases aren’t for public use.
When the Arch was built in the 1960s, the designers had already made plans for a tram system to carry visitors up to the observation deck (and down again). But they knew that park staff would also need access to the tram system for routine maintenance. So they installed the stairways. The stairs are an engineering feat, using 105 landings to snake through the curved structure.
Visitors can sometimes glimpse the hidden staircase through the small windows as they ride up and down in their tram car. So the next time you take a tram ride at the Arch, you can share the “secret” with your fellow riders!
Visitors to the White Haven estate at Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site sometimes happen upon a curious stone building behind the historic house. This humble little structure looks a bit out of place amid the other wooden buildings on the site, and it has undergone several transformations since it was built. What was it used for?
White Haven, circa 1850. Stone building is visible to the immediate left of the main house. Photo credit: NPS
National Park Service archeologists believe the stone building was probably built well before the Civil War – perhaps as early as 1840 – when Grant’s in-laws, Frederick and Ellen Dent, owned and farmed the 850-acre slave plantation. Enslaved laborers are thought to have worked there, cooking food, sewing clothing, and cleaning laundry; and some enslaved cooks may even have lived in the attic.
Although the main house on the estate featured a basement kitchen, its wood construction would have been prone to catching fire during the cold winter months, so cooking duties would probably have shifted to the cooler stone kitchen during the summer.
Photo credit: NPS
Yet a workplace for enslaved people wasn’t the end of the little building’s story. Sometime after slavery was abolished, a permanent kitchen was established on the first floor of the main residence and the stone building ceased to function as a summer kitchen. The roof and walls of the neglected building collapsed.
Photo credit: NPS
Then in the 1940s or 1950s, the private owners of White Haven expanded the west wall of the stone building, rebuilt and re-roofed it, and used it as a three-car garage. Changes to the structure included rebuilding exterior walls, removal of the wall dividing the two rooms, replacement of the gabled roof with a shed roof, and a concrete floor.
Photo credit: NPS
After the National Park Service acquired ownership of White Haven in 1990 (a purchase facilitated by JNPA), workers restored the stone building to its original appearance. Archaeological digs yielded numerous broken dishes, crockery, silverware, as well as sewing equipment from the nineteenth century – further evidence of the domestic tasks enslaved laborers were performing at this site.
On your next visit to the park, be sure to pay a visit to the summer kitchen building, where you’ll find additional information about its many uses.
Are you a fan of national parks? Beyond just paying them a visit, do you want to get more involved in their events and activities? Then National Park Week is for you!!
In August of 1991, the very first National Park Week was established to honor the National Park Service’s 75th anniversary. Since then, it has been celebrated in April alongside Earth Day. This year, National Park Week is April 20-28, and each day is themed around a unique aspect of the national parks.
It is also Park Rx Day, focusing on the connection between the health of people, the health of parks, and the health of our planet.
If you are in Missouri, we highly recommend attempting the NPS Wellness Challenge. All seven of the national park sites in Missouri offer challenges in three categories that visitors can complete: mental, physical, and learning. If you complete a challenge, you can earn a Wellness Challenge Badge!
Visitors take a walk through history as part of the NPS Wellness Challenge at Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site. Credit: NPS
April 21 – Volunteers
Have you ever wanted to volunteer at a national park but either lived too far away or could not find activities that fit your schedule? Now you can volunteer VIRTUALLY as a citizen archivist! Ahead of the upcoming 250th anniversary of American Independence, the National Archives and Records Administration is collaborating with the National Park Service to have volunteers transcribe Revolutionary War Pension Records. These records hold incredible, untold stories of the American Revolution, and once transcribed, will be a permanent contribution to our country’s historical record.
Want to get outside to volunteer? Gateway Arch National Park is having its first ever BioBlitz on April 28. Volunteers will use the iNaturalist app to document various types of wildlife found in the park.
April 22 – Earth Day
On Earth Day, you can join an event at a park near you, or you can learn about all the great ways to practice conservation at home. By taking a few small steps, you can do your part to help protect pollinators, birds, bats, oceans, and even our night skies!
April 23 – Innovation
National Park sites are full of innovative ideas, programs, and technology. For Innovation Day, check out a few of our past blog posts about innovation in some of our partner parks:
After joining the webinar on Workforce Wednesday, young people between the ages of 15 and 18 can take the next step on their National Park Journey by researching and applying for opportunities with the Youth Conservation Corps! One of our partner parks, Voyageurs National Park, even has an upcoming opportunity May 13 – June 13 for Corps members to repair boardwalks and complete trail maintenance in the park.
Youth Conservation Corps installing a bridge at Niobrara National Scenic River. Credit: NPS
April 26 – Community Connections
Did you know that the National Park Service’s work does not stop at a park’s boundary? Every day, parks across the country partner with their surrounding communities to expand their mission of conserving the natural and cultural resources of our country for the “enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations.” A few notable examples in the JNPA network of sites include:
Mississippi National River and Recreation Area– This park is incredibly unique because the National Park Service owns only 67 of the 54,000 acres that the park encompasses. The rest is made up of city, state, and regional parks, a national wildlife refuge, and private businesses and homes. This “partnership park” can only achieve its mission by working closely with the community to achieve their shared goals.
Lower Mississippi Delta Initiative (LMDI)- This outstanding grant program is funded by the National Park Service and co-administered by JNPA. These grants fund small-scale cultural heritage projects at not-for-profit community organizations in the Lower Mississippi Delta Region.
Crosby Farm at Mississippi National River and Recreation Area. Credit: NPS
Swearing in a Junior Ranger at Voyageurs National Park Credit: NPS
April 28 – Arts in the Parks
When you think of national parks, art may not be the first thing that comes to mind. However, all five of the “fine arts” play an important role at national park sites.
Painting – Beginning in the 1800’s, beautiful landscapes of the American West were captured by the painters of the Hudson River School. These paintings helped inspire support for the creation of the national parks. This tradition continues today with the NPS Artist-in-Residence program.
Sculpture – The Ellsworth Rock Gardens at Voyageurs National Park is home to over 200 abstract rock sculptures.
Architecture– Standing at 630 ft, one of the most iconic architectural marvels in the National Park Service is the Gateway Arch.
Music – Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site, Oxford American, and composers Christopher Parker and Kelley Hurt partnered to create a musical tribute to the Little Rock Nine, a jazz composition entitled “The No Tears Suite.”
Poetry – A new initiative this year is “Poetry in Parks.” U.S. National Poet Laureate Ada Limón selected historic American poems which will be displayed as public works of art on picnic tables in seven national parks. The installations will be unveiled throughout the summer and fall.
Rock sculptures at Ellsworth Rock Gardens/Voyageurs National Park. Credit: NPS
No matter what theme speaks to you, no matter how old you are, no matter if you visit in person or virtually, go to a national park next week!
If you’ve ever taken a verrrrry long bicycle ride, you know the physical endurance needed for such an undertaking. Now imagine biking off-road through mountain ranges, mud, deep sand, and flowing streams, all while carrying heavy supplies. For more than 1,900 miles!
That’s just what members of the U.S. Army’s 25th Infantry accomplished – in 1897 no less. The so-called Iron Riders were members of the famed Buffalo Soldiers, all-black regiments who served on the American frontier in the mid-1800s. A living history program this weekend at Gateway Arch National Park will recount the Riders’ grueling journey.
Credit: NPS
As the popularity of bicycles soared worldwide at the end of the 19th century, the Army decided to evaluate their use for certain military operations. Military leaders commissioned a long-distance experiment that would test the efficiency of bikes as a way of moving troops. In May 1897, the all-Black 25th Infantry Regiment Bicycle Corps embarked from Missoula, Montana, bound for St. Louis – a journey of nearly 2,000 miles. Their heavy bikes were laden with all they would need for the trip: cooking supplies and food, rifles and ammunition, tent and poles, and clothing. The combined weight of these provisions and the heavy one-speed bike was 59 pounds!
Credit: Missouri State Parks
The arduous journey took 41 days, an average of about 50 miles per day. The men endured severe storms, extreme heat, food and water shortages, illness from tainted water, and racism and hostility from local residents. In the words of the bicycle corps’ leader Lt. James Moss, “We made and broke camp in the rain; we traveled through mud, water, sand, dust, over rocks, ruts, etc.; for we crossed and recrossed mountain ranges, and forded streams, carrying our rations, rifles, ammunition, tents, blankets, extra underwear, medicines, tools, repairing material, cooking utensils and extra bicycle parts.”
On July 24, 1897, the Iron Riders arrived in St. Louis to great fanfare. Thousands of locals gathered to cheer the finale of what national newspapers called the Great Experiment. Yet despite several attempts to assemble subsequent experimental rides, the corps was ordered to return to Montana. No permanent military bicycle corps was ever established, and the Army soon shifted its focus towards the use of trucks and other motorized vehicles.
Kevin Smith, Iron Rider re-enactor
To learn more about the journey of the Iron Riders, be sure to attend the program at the Arch this Saturday, from 11:00 to 2:00. A re-enactor will be on hand to discuss the riders’ trial and triumphs. Admission is free and no reservation is required.
Are you puzzling over what to do with yourself during cold winter days? Well, wonder no more. In honor of National Puzzle Day on January 29, we suggest cozying up indoors with a fun (or maybe maddeningly challenging) puzzle!
JNPA is crazy for puzzles; we sell a wide variety at our partner park stores. Some are three- dimensional and require manual dexterity (and patience!). Others are flat jigsaw puzzles, both single- and double-sided. Some are kid-friendly, others will challenge any grown-up. The artwork on some of our puzzles are custom-designed for a specific park, while others have a broader national parks theme.
Check out some of our more popular puzzles:
Puzzle fiends who love a challenge will want to snag this 1,000-piece national parks puzzle featuring a colorful montage of national park patches.
But if you like your 1,000 pieces divided into two puzzles, go for one of our two-sided Gateway Arch jigsaw puzzles. When you’re done with one side, just break the pieces apart and start on the other side.
If two-dimensional puzzles aren’t your thing, how about trying your hand at some tricky 3D building sets? Warning – they’re challenging! We offer two buildable models of the Gateway Arch and Old Courthouse, one made from plastic mini-blocks and the other from wood.
Our Arch mini-building block set has 1,913 pieces – enough to keep a team of puzzlers busy for weeks. When completed, it stands more than 14” high.
The pieces for this wooden Arch model are first popped out of their cards, then assembled into a handsome 16” replica.
And finally, to help start your kids off right (and not discourage them!), we offer these little Gateway Arch mini puzzles: either this adorable 24-piece set with a cute carrying strap or a slightly more challenging 140-piece puzzle – they’re great for travel.
One of these projects is sure to be just right for a winter’s day. Happy puzzling!
The Gateway Arch tram system is a one-of-a-kind invention that incorporates components of both Ferris Wheels and elevators in its design. There is nothing else quite like it in the world – and it was invented in only two weeks by Richard Bowser.
It is in this engineering spirit that the Gateway Arch National Park Engineering Contest was created. The contest, held in association with Washington University McKelvey School of Engineering, challenges teams of high school students to create a solution for a real engineering problem that exists in the park. The winning team takes home the coveted Richard Bowser Trophy, which they keep until next year’s competition.
Nine teams from area high schools participated in the 7th Annual Gateway Arch National Park Engineering Contest, making this year’s competition the fiercest yet. Each year students are presented with a different engineering challenge. This year’s challenge asked students to engineer a system for automatically adjusting the Riverboats at the Gateway Arch dock to the appropriate level as the river rises and falls.
Situated on the river beneath the shadow of the Gateway Arch, the Riverboats at the Gateway Arch have been cruising the Mississippi since 1910. The Riverboats offer daily sightseeing cruises, dinner cruises, private charters, and specialty cruises to tourists and locals.
The boats’ dock structure is 303 feet long and consists of 4 barges. Keeping the dock tethered to the levee are four electric winches, one hydroelectric winch, and five cables. There are also utility lines that must be moved as the dock position varies with the water levels.
With the river level fluctuating daily, the dock must be frequently adjusted, so the ramps are not in the water and the docks themselves do not become grounded. Currently, these adjustments are made by hand, a time-consuming process that requires the full crew.
In September 2023, students participating in the contest toured the dock with a park ranger and members of the Riverboats at the Gateway Arch team, so they could see how the winches are used, measure the area, take photographs, receive blueprints, and have any initial questions answered. Using this information, the students produced an executive summary that included pictures, diagrams and other visual aids to communicate their design, as well as a budget for the project.
The competition final was held at Washington University’s McKelvey Engineering complex in Whitaker Hall on Saturday, November 11, 2023. Each of the nine teams presented an executive summary to a panel of six judges (all professional engineers). The teams were judged on both their executive summary content and presentation. They were scored in categories ranging from innovative design, functionality, and ease of use to responsible budget and realistic possibility of the design.
According to Gateway Arch National Park, this year’s contest was fierce and the most competitive yet, with the first-place school winning the trophy by only half a point! Christian Brothers College High School placed first, with teams from St. Louis Centers for Advanced Professional Studies (STL CAPS) taking second and third place. Both STL CAPS teams received the award for Best Executive Summary, as they remarkably tied with a 45.83 score out of 50 points.
The Parkway Spark! program also had two teams enter the competition. The Sparkles took home the award for Best Presentation after receiving a near-perfect presentation score of 49.33 out of 50. Student Ryder Risko of the Parkway Spark! River Tech team received the Charles Janson MVP Award.
The Taylor Tuleja McKelvey Award for Creativity and Ingenuity went to Kate Hulsen of St. Joseph’s Academy.
In addition to the competition component, the contest final included a presentation from a professional engineer, a luncheon, and a guided tour of McKelvey School of Engineering for all contest participants and their families and friends in attendance – an excellent opportunity for students considering the engineering field.
For more information on this year’s contest visit gatewayarchengineeringcontest.com. To inquire about participating in the 8th Annual Gateway Arch National Park Engineering Contest in 2024, contact Anthony Gilpin, at tony_gilpin@nps.gov.
Frederick Dent Grant had big shoes to fill. As the oldest son of Ulysses S. Grant, Fred was treated “always as if I were already a man.” He helped with chores around his childhood home at White Haven and was taught to ride and swim at an early age. “I can see myself now, a chubby little chap, sitting on the back of one of the farm horses and holding on for dear life, my father urging me to be brave,” Grant later recalled.
Young Fred was also exposed early on to the stark realities of warfare. Not long after his father was promoted to the rank of colonel in the 21st Illinois Infantry in 1861, Fred accompanied him through the Illinois countryside. Colonel Grant believed his 11-year-old son was relishing his time as an unofficial member of the 21st. He wrote to his wife Julia: “Fred enjoys it hugely…The Soldiers and officers call him Colonel and he seems to be quite a favorite.”
Ulysses also bragged about his son’s bravery a few years later when he brought him along during the Vicksburg Campaign of 1863. “Fred is very well enjoying himself hugely. He has heard balls whistle and is not moved in the slightest by it. He was very anxious to run the blockade of Grand Gulf.” But decades later, Fred painted a different picture, having been horrified by what he saw from a Union gunboat at Grand Gulf: “I was sickened by the scenes of carnage.”
At one point, the boy was shot in the leg by a Confederate soldier, but soon made a complete recovery and was able to stay with his father until the 45-day siege of Vicksburg ended. Fred returned to Ulysses’ side again during further battles. And he accompanied him to Washington, DC, when President Lincoln promoted Grant as Commanding General of all Union armies.
Credit: NPS
Despite his early distaste for the horrors of combat, Frederick Grant pursued a military career. Like his father, he attended West Point six years after the end of the Civil War. He was eventually promoted to the rank of Major General during the Spanish-American War. Also like his father, he was a heavy smoker and died of cancer in 1885 at age 62.
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