Closed off in the Gateway City

We Live Here

Spend time in St. Louis’ wealthy, old neighborhoods and you might notice something unusual. Amid all the splendor of ornate craftsmanship and tree-lined streets you’ll often happen across thick, wrought iron gates. In fact the city helped put gated communities on the map in America. The developers of these early streets also crafted racial restrictive covenants, which would spread to suburbs in St. Louis and beyond. With the help of St. Louis preservationist Michael Allen, Kameel and Tim trace the legacy of gated communities to modern day. They find that while the mechanics have changed, the ideas and beliefs that helped build some of the first gated, private streets in the country are hardly a thing of the past.