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Thursday, September 28, 2023

Visit Missouri-Review of Faust Park

 

Faust Park Butterfly House
Butterfly House
There are many interesting parks in the St. Louis metro area and I enjoy visiting them.  On a beautiful September morning I toured parts of Faust Park with a photography group that I mentor. Faust Park is located in Chesterfield, Missouri which is in St. Louis County. On this visit we spent our time in the historical village, but on other occasions I have visited some of the many features of the park.  It is complete with a playground, picnic areas, walking paths, a lake and so much more.  In this post I will give you some of the highlights of the park and share my photos with you.

History of Faust Park

The land that is now Faust Park was originally owned by Frederick Bates who was the 2nd governor of the state of Missouri.  In 1819 Bates built an estate on the property and called it Thornhill.  That building still stands and is open for the public to see what life was like in the 1800 and 1900's. 

In 1968 Leicester Busch Faust acquired 100 acres of the land and opened it to the public as a park.  By 1995 the park area had doubled in size.

St. Louis Carousel

The St. Louis Carousel was built in the 1920's and for years it delighted visitors to the Forest Park area.  It was in an amusement park called the Highlands.  In 1963 when there was a fire at the Highlands forcing it to close, the carousel was moved to Faust Park.  Today it is housed in a building at Faust Park and is a delight for kids of all ages.  I have taken all four of my granddaughters there at different times and they always enjoyed riding the majestic horses.
Building Housing Carousel

Sophia M. Sachs Butterfly House

In 1998 the Butterfly House opened in Faust Park.  This beautiful building, which is pictured at the beginning of this post, houses a wonderful collection of butterflies.  I worked for several years as a volunteer at the house and I was able to guide the public as they toured the Butterfly House.  I learned a lot about butterflies and various insects and enjoyed photographing the butterflies.  Here is a link to some of my photos and an article on photographing butterflies. 

Historic Village

The historic village at Faust Park consists of a collection of nineteenth century St. Louis County homes and buildings. They all were in danger of being demolished and were rescued and moved to the village at Faust Park by the St. Louis County Parks Department.  The buildings date from about 1840 to 1900.  You can read more information about the village at Faust Park Historic Village

There was not a formal tour going on the day we visited so we wandered through the village taking photos and enjoying the historic buildings.  As we approached one of the houses a worker for the parks department offered to give our group a tour of that home.  It was the Davis House, and we were able to go inside on the main floor where she gave us a bit of information about the house.  Here is a photo I took of the outside and one of the front parlor.
Historic Home

Front Parlor in Historic Home

Below you will see a photo I took of the 1800's General Store.
General Store from 1800's

There were several other homes in the village.  Here are three of them.  You will note that each is a completely different style from the others.
Two Story Yellow Home

Small Historic Home

Historic Log Cabin


4 comments:

  1. I have always planned on visiting the Butterfly House when I'm in St. Louis, and haven't quite gotten there. Now I have several more places to visit in Faust Park. My daughter and I will have to make a day of it when I visit her. The Faust Park Historic Village looks fascinating. Thanks for this interesting virtual tour through your wonderful photographs.

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  2. Mary Beth, Faust Park looks like a fabulous place to while away the hours! No doubt I would love exploring the butterfly house and historic village, in particular. Thank you for another lovely virtual visit courtesy of your wonderful photographic skills.

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  3. My brother will eventually be moving to St. Louis - he's there back and forth to see his wife all the time - I flew to St. Louis in January for their wedding, and was in the city for four days - it's lovely. We didn't get to tour because it was all wedding related activities, but having all the information at my fingertips that you provide on St. Louis will be handy when I go to visit.

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  4. It is amazing that so much has been preserved in this one park. I am sure it would be a lot of fun to take the house tours, visit the butterfly house and ride the carousel, all surrounded by the fabulous park setting which even offers a place to picnic. St. Louis is truly placed to have Faust Park!

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