Street Names

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

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

Sources for the history of the streets of Holly Hills:
  • “The Streets of St. Louis” by William B. and Marcella C. Magnam, 1996
  • “History of St. Louis Neighborhoods – Oak Hill & Morganford” by Norbury L. Wayman, 1981
  • The St. Louis Public Library’s online street index.

 

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