“You can drop me right here,” I said to the cab driver when I spotted the giant chess piece on the pavement outside the chess club. The King piece – the largest in the world according to the Guinness Book of Records – is 6.096 meters tall, 2.79 meters in diameter at the base, and made of African sapele mahogany. Anyone who sees it will wonder why it is there. A distinguished guild that draws thousands to the city each year sits at the corner of Maryland Avenue in the Central West End of Saint Louis, Missouri – Saint Louis Chess Club which started in 2008. The United States Senate named Saint Louis the United States chess capital in 2014.
“It’s all down to Rex Sinquefield and his wife Dr. Jeannie Cairns Sinquefield,” Maurice Ashley, the first African-American Grandmaster in chess history and Creative Director of Saint Louis Chess Club tells me. “Jeannie is an avid chess player. She’s written a book on it, and also instigated a chess merit badge for the Scouts.”
The giant chess piece sits outside the World Chess Hall of Fame. Saint Louis Chess Club, where the USA Chess Federation hosts the US Chess Championship, is across the road from the Saint Louis Chess Club. Both buildings offer free entry to visitors.
White stone chess tables and black metal chairs line the wide pavement outside. I walked in to see the halls which are seen by millions online when the club hosts tournaments. Daylight from skylights fell on expertly-crafted chess tables. There were even confessionals for players to retreat to and rethink strategy during tournaments.
Chess is one of several means by which Saint Louis has defeated the odds of its reputation as an isolated place in the American Midwest. I flew in when British Airways added a direct flight from London to Saint Louis this April. Fittingly, my first experience of the city was having tremendous fun paddling up stream in a long canoe on the Mississippi River.
“Anyone can paddle, kayak, or swim here,” said Mark Green of the Big Muddy Adventures team who were guiding the tour. “But almost no one does. I don’t think locals realise that they can.”
The city evolved around the Mississippi and the river still does the hard work; several enormous barges carrying what appeared to be heavy cargo passed us by as we paddled. Green explained that the river also produces most of Saint Louis’ drinking water as I set eyes on Saint Louis’ greatest icon – the Gateway Arch.
The Gateway Arch is Eeero Saarinen’s 192 meter tall, swooping great structure on the bank of the Mississippi in Downtown Saint Louis. It was commissioned as a memorial for the Western frontier reaching Saint Louis by 1800, and made it the gateway for westward travel. Now beloved by the people it rainbows over the city. The ground floor galleries of the Gateway Arch Museum makes a contemporary exploration of this 200 year period of United States’ history.
For a view from the top I took a tram halfway up, and climbed into a 1960s style pod for a jerky four minute ride to the observation deck. From the top the redbrick of the Busch Stadium – home of the Cardinals, the grassy knoll of the park, and the Old Courthouse outstretched on one side. The shadow of the arch fell over the Mississippi on the other.
Beyond historic monuments, a prestigious chess club, and the steadfast river there is a softer, creative side to the city. 21C Museum Hotel Saint Louis has a dedicated space with free access to contemporary art. The Walls Off Washington in the Grand Center Arts District is an immersive open-air gallery of murals painted on the walls of an entire block.
The mile-long mecca of vibes at Delmar Loop can be explored on foot all the way. Besides vintage clothing and vinyl music stores the Walk of Fame remembers Saint Louis legends. Tina Turner, Chuck Berry and Maya Angelou are all honoured with brass stars .
For a greener encounter Forest Park, 500 acres bigger than New York’s Central Park, is home to The Saint Louis Art Museum – an unexpected gem with vast rooms filled with the work of Frida Kahlo, Jackson Pollock, and Matisse. The Missouri History Museum, and Saint Louis Zoo are also both here. Arguably, the top green space is the Missouri Botanical Gardens with the largest collection of orchids in the world, and a 50 year old Japanese garden where people picnic during the Japanese Garden Festival every September.
A note then on eating and drinking. No one deserves to miss out on pre-dinner cocktails at the fabulous Jujube Inn in the Central West End or the Venice Cafe in Pestalozzi. Louie has an exalted pizza menu worthy of a foray into the neighbourhood of Clayton. This was also the trip where I discovered Mexican Coca Cola (sweeter than other varieties) at Union Loafers near Missouri Botanical Gardens. Their ham and cheddar on wedges of marbled rye bread needs to be studied. The noodle bowls at Stews Food & Liquor, I discovered, are best had al fresco.
All things considered Saint Louis makes a great big meal of its nowhere reputation. To do the city justice would take a week at least. For Brits, the direct flight from London makes Saint Louis a gateway for exploring the places around it. The first 300 miles of Route 66 from Chicago ends in Saint Louis. In addition, being 300 miles from Nashville and 290 miles north of Memphis is hardly ‘nowhere’. On the contrary, I think in chess, that’s what you would call checkmate.