Soulard, St. Louis facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Soulard
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Neighborhood of St. Louis
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The Soulard Market in the northern portion of the Soulard neighborhood.
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Location (red) of Soulard within St. Louis
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| Country | United States |
| State | Missouri |
| City | St. Louis |
| Wards | 7, 9 |
| Area | |
| • Total | 0.60 sq mi (1.6 km2) |
| Population
(2010)
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| • Total | 3,440 |
| • Density | 5,730/sq mi (2,214/km2) |
| ZIP code(s) |
Part of 63104
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| Area code(s) | 314 |
| Website | stlouis-mo.gov |
Soulard (say "soo-lard") is a very old and interesting neighborhood in St. Louis, Missouri. It's named after Antoine Soulard and his wife, Julia Cérre Soulard. Antoine Soulard was a surveyor for the Spanish government. He started developing this land in the 1790s.
Today, Soulard is mostly a place where people live. It has many cool businesses like restaurants and bars. The main office for Anheuser-Busch is also here. This company makes famous drinks and has a big brewery in Soulard. Many houses in the area were built in the mid-to-late 1800s. You can also find several historic churches here.
Many of the bars in Soulard feature live music. They often play blues and jazz bands, which St. Louis is famous for. A well-known blues piano player, James Crutchfield, lived here for many years. He performed in local clubs until he passed away in 2001. The neighborhood also has fun "pub crawls" where groups visit different places.
Local groups like the Soulard Restoration Group help keep the neighborhood nice. They organize events and work to make the area clean and safe. They even publish a newspaper called The Soulard Renaissance.
Soulard is home to the Soulard Farmers Market. This is the oldest farmers market west of the Mississippi River! Over a hundred different sellers are there. You can find farmers, fresh produce, meat, spices, flowers, and lots of other food. The market is even shown in a children's book called Ragtime Tumpie by Alan Schroeder.
Fun Events in Soulard
Soulard hosts many exciting events throughout the year. Two of the biggest are the Mardi Gras celebration and Oktoberfest.
Mardi Gras in St. Louis
Soulard is famous for hosting the St. Louis Mardi Gras festival. This huge party sometimes brings hundreds of thousands of people to the neighborhood! Many people say that St. Louis has the second-largest Mardi Gras celebration in the United States.
Just like the famous party in New Orleans, Soulard's Mardi Gras has several parades. These parades happen during the Mardi Gras season.
Pet Parade and Wiener Dog Races
About two Sundays before Mardi Gras, there's a fun parade for families and their pets. It's called "Krewe of Barkus." People dress up their pets in costumes, and everyone has a great time. After the parade, there are informal Wiener dog races! It's a very cute and funny event to watch.
Grand Parade and Celebrations
On the Saturday evening before Fat Tuesday, there's a bigger parade. The streets of Soulard, like Geyer, Allen, and Russell, get very crowded with people. There are special areas you can pay to enter, and often a famous music artist performs for free on the main stage. In recent years, the main parade has moved just north of Soulard, into downtown St. Louis.
Soulard's Population
| Historical population | ||
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| Year | Pop. | ±% |
| 1990 | 3,771 | — |
| 2000 | 3,187 | −15.5% |
| 2010 | 3,440 | +7.9% |
In 2010, Soulard had a population of 3,440 people. Most of the residents were White (82.6%), with 13.3% being Black. A small percentage of the population was Native American, Asian, or from other backgrounds. About 2.7% of the people living in Soulard were of Hispanic origin.
Images for kids
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The Anheuser-Busch and Lemp brewery buildings and Soulard in south city near the Mississippi River, 2006
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A two-family home in Soulard, around 2006
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Stars are a common architectural motif from the era of Soulard's building, an anchor plate on brick.
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Pedestrians on South Eighth St., around 1910
