Positioned just below the junction of the Mississippi and Missouri, St. Louis is one of the most prominent US cities. It is, in fact, the largest city of the great state of Missouri. John Eilermann St. Louis mentions that this city is often referred to as the “Gateway to the West” as from here the Europeans had set out to triumph over the regions of the Wild West.

John Eilermann St. Louis marks a number of interesting facts about this city of Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city that has an extremely rich history and intriguing culture. There are multiple elements due to which this city is famous, such as its incredible beer and the St Louis Cardinals baseball team. John Eilermann St. Louis points out that there are a number of other interesting and engaging facts related to this city beyond these aspects. Here are a few of them:

• St. Louis houses more important tourist attractions having free entry than any other city of the nation, exception Washington, D.C. No entry fee is charged to the visitors visiting the history museum, science center, art museum, as well as the zoo of this city.
• The Saint Louis Zoological Park came into existence after the bird exhibit of the World Fair of 1904 held here proved to be exceptionally popular. The flight cage used for this bird exhibit was commissioned by the Smithsonian. However, instead of shipping it back to DC, this flight cage was purchased by St. Louis for $3500.
• The Gateway Arch is the most important tourist attraction of the St. Louis city. On a non-cloudy day, from the top of this structure, the visitors can typically see around thirty miles in each direction.  At times people may feel like the arch is moving as they are taking in the awe-inspiring views of the surrounding from its top. This happens as this structure was initially designed to sway to around 18 inches. The Gateway Arch structure additionally has the capacity to withstand earthquakes with high efficiency.
• The City Museum of St. Louis was inaugurated in the year of 1997. This museum is famous for featuring a giant jungle gym and playground that is made from various salvaged industrial and architectural items.
• St. Louis was the very first city of the United States to host the modern Olympics. It was the third city in the world to do so.
• This city has deep French roots, which are cherished and celebrated even today. There is a grand Mardi Gras festival and parade held here every year. The Mardi Gras parade of St. Louis is considered to be the second largest in the US, after the one held in New Orleans.
• The Hill region of St. Louis is popular for serving the best Italian food in the nation, and is also the birthplace of the delicious toasted ravioli. This city is also famed for its lip-smacking gooey butter cake that was invented sometime in the 1930s.

These facts pointed out by John Eilermann St. Louis can go a long way in enabling people to acquire a better idea about the history and culture of the city.