Exploring Environmental Challenges to Redevelopment in the Greater East St Louis Area

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Researching

Non-Environmental Data Sources (Formal)

 

City Directories

City directories provide information about businesses and industry located throughout the city. The years available for city directories can vary, but will help paint a picture of potential brownfield sites. They may also contribute to understanding of the context of the site. For example, the intersection of two busy streets developed after the 1950s is likely to have a gas station at one of the corners. It is important to note that some streets may be closed, or more commonly, a street name has changed over the years. See an example page from the 1924 city Text Box: City Directory Example: Click to enlarge Text Box: Zoomed in example of a City Directory page Click to enlarge directory below. University of Illinois East St. Louis City Directory Site

Sanborn Maps

Sanborn maps are fire insurance maps and are available from 1905 and 1955. These maps provide information about businesses and residences located in the coverage area. Businesses are categorized, some construction materials are listed, churches, schools, and other institutions are listed and the number of dwelling units are included on the map. Together, these provide clues to the conditions of the neighborhood, which may prove useful for directing further investigation.

 

Information available from the maps can vary depending on site but would include the listing of the type and possibly the name of business. Areas that were not developed in 1905, 1955 were not likely to have fire insurance; unfortunately, the Sanborn Maps are not available for these areas.

Illinois Sanborn maps

St. Louis and Missouri information (which may have some East St. Louis information) can be found at the Missouri History Museum Library and Research Center

           

Text Box: Sanborn Map Example: Commercial Cluster Click to enlarge Text Box: Sanborn Map Example: Auto- Cluster Click to enlarge Text Box: Sanborn Map Example: Residential Cluster Click to enlarge

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aerial Photographs

Aerial photographs taken may provide clues to the progress and type of development of an area. The earliest aerial photography in the collection is from the late 1930s and the most recent is from 1998. These are available from the UIUC Geography Library.

 

USGS Maps

These provide a base and comparison for other map information. These maps can be found at the UIUC Geography Library.

 

Institutional Narratives

Government agencies involved in the area may have pertinent reports available to the public. The EPA, Brownfields Office, Illinois Fire Marshal (jurisdiction for Underground Storage Tanks), Army Corps of Engineers, or other agencies are good starting places. It is also important to contact the agencies directly since not all reports will be available online or in libraries.

 

Newspaper Articles

Newspaper articles or other media sources covering key environmental events (floods, illegal dumping, abandoned gas stations, major contamination/pollution problems, lawsuits, major engineering projects, and the like) may provide insight to the site. LexisNexis, local libraries, and residents may have related articles and media.

Some places to start:

East St. Louis Monitor: No website exists, but there may be some copies at the East St. Louis Library. Most of their archives have been destroyed.

Belleville Democrat: http://www.bnd.com/

St. Louis Post-Dispatch: www.stltoday.com/

 

General Historical Document Search

In addition to the specific information gathering suggested above, it is important to research general historical documents—institutional reports, city documents, comprehensive plans, newspaper articles, and other documents can help provide information about the site. Below are suggested locations to look for historical documents:

 

Missouri History Museum Library and Research Center: The Missouri History Museum and Library Research Center has historical documents from St. Louis and Missouri with some information available about East St. Louis. Center located at 225 S Skinker Blvd, St Louis - (314) 746-4500.

           

East St. Louis Public Library: The holdings at the East St. Louis Public Library are minimal. Much of their archived information was lost when moving from their former location to their current location. Library located at 5320 State St., East St Louis, IL 62203 (618) 394-0539.

 

NAICS (National Association of Industry Classification System):

 This web site offers information on the detailed classifications of manufacturing, commercial, and retail processes, and when .combined with business directories, allows one to select only those processes with contamination potential. It can be used to identify current locations of manufacturing firms where potentially polluting activities are occurring.