This old map represents the town of St. Louis, nearly as it was laid out in 1764. Its breadth from the Mississippi, to the West, was to the line of Rue de Grange (now Third street), and its length was some few blocks shorter than the map represents. The wall of fortifications was completed in 1780. The letters have the following significance: A The Tower. B Half Moons. C Bastions. D Gates. E Government House. F The Church. G The Market. H The Little River. I Private Tracts of Land.The roads leading from the gates were what are now known as Carondelet Avenue (then the well known Vide Poche Road); the Manchester Road; the St. Charles Road, with its branches; and a road which led towards where Bremen now is. What looks like blocks of wood represents fields of cultivation, and the dots show timber. The mark of timber is only given for the purpose of guiding the reader as to the cardinal points. It must be borne in mind that in some of the localities the direction of the streets has been slightly altered, which may account for some apparent discrepancies which may appear to subsist between the map and the main narrative as to the locality of the old fortifications.
This map is copied from the original map drawn by Colonel Auguste Chouteau, who was at the founding of the city, in 1764, and first surveyed the land. The map was drawn in conformity to an order from the Department, at Washington.The names of the streets that were given at the laying out the town were: Main Street, Church Street, Barn Street, Now Main Street, Second Street, Third Street, Running North and South. Tower Street, Market Street, Missouri Street, Kickapoo Street, Now are Walnut Street, Market Street, Chesnut Street, Pine Street, Running East and West.
