A Brief History of Holly Hills

Originally settled in 1767 by a Frenchman named Clement Delor de Treget, the village of Carondelet included common fields set aside for farming and grazing. This common land which encompassed the current Holly Hills neighborhood, along with points both north and east, was divided into long narrow strips which were assigned to individual villagers. By the time of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, there were approximately 250 villagers living in 50 houses.

By 1832 the town of Carondelet was incorporated. In 1836, the Sisters of St. Joseph, comprising four Catholic nuns, arrived and opened the first school in Carondelet. Up until the 1840's Carondelet retained its French and Creole heritage, but in the latter half of the decade a growing number of German immigrants began settling in the village, changing the character of the area.

During the St. Louis cholera epidemic of 1849, city residents began fleeing to the rural outskirts, including Carondelet. This caused panic among the residents, who nearly passed an ordinance outlawing anyone suffering from cholera from entering the town, unless they were "bona fide inhabitants" of Carondelet. By the time the epidemic had subsided in the fall of 1849 nearly one-tenth of the population of St. Louis had died. The residents of Carondelet faired much better, and consequently the reputation of the town was enhanced.

During the Civil War, loyalties were split with some residents fighting for the Union, and others leaving to fight for the Confederacy. A farmer from south St. Louis County named Ulysses S. Grant, who previously had delivered firewood to Carondelet, would go on to lead the Union Army to victory, and later become President of the United States. After the war, both Confederates and Union Army veterans returned to Carondelet for what clearly must have been an uncomfortable cohabitation. President Grant would return to visit Carondelet in 1876.

In 1870, Carondelet merged with the city of St. Louis. And in 1873, Carondelet native Susan Blow began what is regarded as the first kindergarten in the United States at Des Peres School located at 6303 Michigan Avenue.

Carondelet Park was dedicated on July 4, 1876, the centennial anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, on land previously held by Alexander Lacey Lyle, who built the house in the park now known as the Lyle House.

A 1920's artist's rendition of the Holly Hills neighborhood.

In the early 1920's, developers William Federer, Gus Arendes and Don Livingston purchased a large plot of land from Missouri Pacific Railroad. They planned to develop the area north of Carondelet Park into a residential area with the elegance of Hollywood; thus the name Holly Hills. The first building permit for a home on Holly Hills, across from the park, was issued in 1926. The Great Depression affected Holly Hills as it did elsewhere and the size of many of the later homes built in the neighborhood was scaled back from Federer's original vision. Many unemployed in the area found work stabilizing the channel of the River Des Peres with limestone boulders.

In 1927, the Holly Hills Improvement Association was formed. Today it is the oldest active neighborhood organization in the city of St. Louis.

Development of the area continued after World War II. At the time, Morganford Road was still two lanes and unpaved. In 1951, rent controls initiated during the war to deal with housing shortages were lifted. The 1950's brought on a building boom of houses, churches and schools.

Today Holly Hills is a thriving and desirable neighborhood in south St. Louis.

Sources for the history of Holly Hills:

"A History of Carondelet" by NiNi Harris, 1991
"History of St. Louis Neighborhoods" on the city website

A History of the Street Names of Holly Hills

Adkins Avenue

Named after Henry Adkins, a steamboat captain.

Alexander Street

Named after Alexander Lacey Lyle who owned the estate that later became Carondelet Park.

Alma Avenue

First appeared in the Arcadia Heights subdivision of 1913. The name began to be popular after British troops fought at the Battle of Alma, a river in the Crimea, in 1854.

Arendes Drive

Gus Arendes was one of the three developers of the neighborhood.

Bates Street

Named after Frederick Bates, the second governor of Missouri.

Bellerive Boulevard

Named for Louis St. Ange de Bellerive, a commandant from Illinois. He governed the village of St. Louis before the arrival of the first Spanish governor.

Bowen Street

Named for Confederate General John Bowen, a former St. Louis neighbor of Ulysses S. Grant.

Burgen Avenue

In 1909 the Burgen Place subdivision was named from the Burgenland province in eastern Austria.

Carondelet Park

The park was named after the village of Carondelet. The village was named in 1794 by Clement DeLore in honor of Baron Francois Louis Hector de Carondelet, Governor General of the Spanish-Louisiana Province.

Concordia Avenue

The private Concordia Heights subdivision of 1910 which was named for the nearby Concordia Cemetery. Concordia was the ancient Roman goddess of harmony or peace.

Coronado Avenue

The three developers of Holly Hills, Federer, Livingston and Arendes, made plans at the Coronado hotel, and named one of the streets in its honor.

Dewey Avenue

Named for Admiral George Dewey, a hero of the Spanish American war.

Dover Place

One of the developers was originally from Delaware, and named two streets after Delaware cities: Dover and Wilmington.

Federer Place

William Federer was one of the three developers of the neighborhood.

Fillmore Street

Named after United States President Millard Fillmore.

Grand Boulevard

Hiriam Leffingwell, one of the original Forest Park founders, envisioned a broad boulevard stretching from the Mississippi River north of the city to the river south of the city. When he couldn't get buy-in on his desire to name it Lindell Boulevard, due to its proximity to Peter and Jesse Lindell's property, he settled on calling it "grand boulevard."

Haven Street

Originally named after Edward Haren, a landowner and banker, a street sign was printed wrong and never fixed. The street has ever since been known as Haven.

Holly Hills Boulevard

Named after the neighborhood, which in turn was named after Hollywood.

Iron Street

Named after the Iron Mountain Railroad.

Leona Street

First appeared in the Leona Place subdivision of 1923.

Livingston Drive

Donald Livingston was one of the three developers of the neighborhood.

Loughborough Avenue

Named for surveyor John M. Loughborough.

Marwinette Avenue

Marwinette is a composite name of the wives of the three developers of Holly Hills: MARie Federer, WINifred Livingston and JeanETTE Arendes.

Morganford Road

Morganford Road originally led to a ford on the River Des Peres owned by James Morgan. "Morgan's Ford" was eventually shortened to Morganford.

Newport Avenue

Named after an original subdivision from 1908.

Ray Avenue

Named for Frederick Ray, an area developer.

Rosa Avenue

Possibly named after an original subdivision named Rosa Park, or it may be named after Rosa Weil.

Toenges Avenue

Named for a subdivision developer in 1922.

Tyrolean Avenue

Named after a region in Austria because it was originally in a subdivision called Austria Heights.

Wilmington Avenue