The Gateway Arch

The Gateway Arch rises 630 feet (192 m) above the Mississippi River in St. Louis, a gleaming stainless-steel catenary curve that is the tallest arch in the world and the tallest monument in the United States. Designed by architect Eero Saarinen and completed in 1965, it commemorates the westward expansion of the nation and the role of St. Louis as the gateway to the frontier.

The arch is exactly as wide as it is tall, its weighted-catenary shape the form a hanging chain takes when inverted. A unique tram system carries visitors through the hollow legs to an observation deck at the top. It anchors Gateway Arch National Park, the smallest national park by area.

• The Mississippi River
  The great river that drains the American heartland related