Almost a half-ton of dynamite stored in a Maplewood house was set off almost 101 years ago, demolishing 11 homes, killing two women and injuring many, according to Doug Houser in his 40 South article, Maplewood History: The Top Ten Things You Never Knew About Maplewood’s Big Bang.
St. Louis historian/activist-archivist, Mark Loehrer (@PubPolHist) posted these clippings on Twitter recently. Mr. Houser said he hadn’t seen these. See more photos, and details of the explosion here.
Dear Doug,
I lived at 7220 Sarah St. and our house is shown in these photos. It is the 6th house going west from the corner of Limit and Sarah. It must have survived the blast because I raised a family there starting in 1978. My oldest Son now owns the home and these photos were amazing to see, as well as now it makes sense why some of the homes are only one story. Also this can possibly explain why the backyards on Anna are higher in elevation than the backyards on Sarah St. I do believe our home is all original as far as the base shape, there were some exterior porches that have changed over the years, but basically from the stone foundation up it is original in structure. Thanks again for sharing this unique history of Maplewood. I would love to see an article on the old “Maplewood Wedge” where Manchester Rd. and Southwest meet. I also remember when Maplewood was considered “Uptown Downtown”, my mother used to bring us to the old Goldies Department store and the Woolworth.
I’ve been curious which houses were repaired and which were replaced.
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